A new Centers for Disease Control study showed that fewer teens are having sex and more are using contraception than in previous studies.
Forty-two percent of 15- to 19-year-old females and 44 percent of males surveyed between 2011 and 2015 reported having sex at least once, compared to 51 percent of females and 60 percent of males in a 1988 study. More than 9 in 10 reported using contraception when they did have sex, compared to about 8 in 10 in the 1988 study, CNN reported.
The top three forms of birth control used were condoms, withdrawal, and the birth control pill, but other methods like IUDs and implantable and injectable birth control methods are now available and may have contributed to the increase, CNN reported.
Abstinence and comprehensive sex education programs may have contributed to the decline in teen sex and the increase in contraception, and shows like “Teen Mom” and “16 and Pregnant” may also have helped teens see some of the unintended consequences of their actions and make more responsible choices, according to Newsweek.
The study defined sex as vaginal sexual intercourse and did not consider same-sex activity between teens. Teens still account for about half of new STIs reported each year, Newsweek reported. Activities like viewing pornography and sexting were not counted as sexual activity.
Teens who said they did not have sex gave reasons including religious and moral prohibitions as well as not having found the right person and not wanting to get a girl pregnant, NBC News reported.
The teen birthrate continued to decline to 22 per 1,000 females in 2015 from 62 per 1,000 in 1991, International Business Times reported.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.