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Adolescent sexuality in the United States relates to the sexuality of American adolescents and its place in American society, both in terms of their feelings, behaviors and development and in terms of the response of the government, educators and interested groups. Every teen has a sexual life, whether with others or through fantasies.

Studies have found that the average age girls are entering puberty has remained steady since the 1960s and that there is a correlation living conditions and the onset of menarche. This is "at least two years earlier than previous generations. This means they are ready for sex earlier physically, but not emotionally or cognitively."

Almost all US teens reported having used at least one form of contraception during intercourse, but only 75% of females aged 15-19 used some method of contraception the first time they had sex. In addition, 46% report not having used a condom the last time they had sexual intercourse. A majority have been provided with some information regarding sexuality, though there have been efforts among social conservatives in the United States government to limit sex education in public schools to abstinence-only curricula. Every year 1 in 4 sexually active teens contracts an STD. The number of American adolescents having sexual intercourse has dropped in recent years, but oral sex is on the rise. Sexual activity is associated with risks of contracting a sexually transmitted disease and pregnancy, the later being 2 to 10 times more prevalent in the United State than in the rest of the similarly developed countries. Given their incomplete emotional and cognitive development, adolescents are also particularly at risk to suffer from emotional distress as a result of their sexual activities.

Motivation and frequency
More than half of sexually active teens have had sexual partners they are not dating. Atlantic Monthly social critic Caitlin Flanagan calls this a "a genuine and puzzling change in teen sexual behavior." Alexandra Hall, senior editor at Boston magazine, terms it a "profound shift in the culture of high school dating and sex." Risky sexual behaviors that involve "anything but intercourse," as well as sexually transmitted diseases, are "rampant" among teenagers; Lloyd Kolbe, director of the CDC's Adolescent and School Health program, called the STD problem "a serious epidemic." While 90% of teens surveyed in a poll commissioned by NBC News and People magazine knew they could get an STD from having sexual intercourse, only 67% said that they use protection every time they have sex.

In 2002, the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health reported that the percentage of teenagers who report having had sexual intercourse declined between 1988 and 1998, but also reported a significant trend toward early initiation of sex. In 1998, 50% of teenage females and 55% of males reported ever having had sexual intercourse, a change from 53% and 60% a decade before. In 1998, 19% of adolescent females 14 years of age and younger reported having had sexual intercourse, but ten years earlier, this number was 10%. Before "age 15, a majority of first intercourse experiences among females are reported to be non-voluntary."

The teenage years are when most in the United States first have intercourse. The current data suggests that by the time a person turns 18, slightly more than half of females and nearly two-thirds of males will have had intercourse. Although most teenagers have sexual intercourse as adolescents, most of these teens are not "sexually active"; in 1997, only 37% of females and 33% of males who reported ever having had sexual intercourse said that they had sex in the past 3 months.

Although early sexual activity may be caused by a variety of factors, the media are believed to play a significant role. The sexual messages contained in film, television, and music are becoming more explicit in dialog, lyrics, and behavior. In addition, these messages contain unrealistic, inaccurate, and misleading information that young people accept as fact. Teens rank the media second only to school sex education programs as a leading source of information about sex. Research has found "found a direct relationship between the amount of sexual content children see and their level of sexual activity or their intentions to have sex in the future." The same study found sex was usually portrayed as 'risk-free' in films, television programs, music and magazines. Sex was usually between unmarried couples and examples of using condoms or other contraception were "extremely rare." The study suggested that adolescents may turn to the media as a "sexual super peer" when seeking information about sexual norms and adult roles given the lack of information about sexuality readily available to them.

In a 2003 study, 89% of girls reported feeling pressured by boys to have sex, while 49% of boys reported feeling pressured by girls to have sex. In contrast, 67% of boys felt pressured by other boys, while 53% of girls felt pressured by other girls.

A 2005 poll commissioned by NBC News and People magazine found that, of the teens surveyed, the reasons they had sexual intercourse for the first time were:

! ! Major reason !! Minor reason !! Not a reason
 * Met the right person
 * 62% || 20% || 18%
 * Were curious
 * 36% || 35% || 28%
 * To satisfy a sexual desire
 * 34% || 34% || 31%
 * Hoped it would make relationship closer
 * 28% || 28% || 44%
 * Pressure from partner
 * 15% || 19% || 65%
 * Wanted to be more popular and accepted
 * 2% || 16% || 81%
 * }
 * Pressure from partner
 * 15% || 19% || 65%
 * Wanted to be more popular and accepted
 * 2% || 16% || 81%
 * }
 * }

Between 1991 and 2001, the number of high school students in the United States who reported that they have had sexual intercourse dropped from 54% to 46%. The vast majority of 13-16 year olds, 87%, have not have sexual intercourse, and 73% have not been sexually intimate at all. Three quarters of them have not because they feel they are too young, and just as many say they have made a conscious decision not to. Girls are more likely than boys to say they have made a conscious decision to wait (81% vs. 67%) and and are more likely to believe they are too young (82% vs. 67%). Girls who date or hang out with older boys are "more likely to be pressured into having sex, more likely to get a sexually transmitted disease, and more likely to experience an unwanted pregnancy."

Almost half of boys (47%) of boys and fewer girls (38%) believe that oral sex is "not as big of a deal as intercourse," and 55% of teens believe that it is "very important" to be in love before engaging in oral sex. Despite this, "there is discrepancy when it comes to willingness to perform oral sex [with] 22% of sexually active girls say[ing] their partner never performs oral sex on them, while only 5% of boys say their partner never does." According Flanagan, oral sex is "now commonly performed by very young girls outside of romantic relationships, casually and without any expectation of reciprocation." On the other hand, New York Times columnist David Brooks wrote, "Reports of an epidemic of teenage oral sex are .. greatly exaggerated." About 12% of teens aged 13-16 have had oral sex, and 13% of the same teens have had sexual intercourse.

The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System survey has found that from 1991 to 2005 there was a increase from 21.6% +/-0.89% to 23.3%(+/-0.83%) of students who used drugs or alcohol before their last sexual intercourse, the increase is essentially a stastical tie, indeed 21.6 + 0.89 + 0.83 = 23.32 &gt; 23.3. The same survey found that the same metric decreased from 24.8% in 1995 to 23.3% in 2005 (again within the error of margin). The same survey also found that during the said period current Cocaine use has doubled, current marijuana use increased by 25%. All in all, the metric 'used drugs or alcohol before they have sex' mainly demonstrate than when the population in general has more alcohool and drug, then the sexually active part of the population too, and vice-versa. Among the 33.9% of high school students nationwide in 2005 who had sexual intercourse with one or more persons during the three months preceding the survey, 14.1% of Black students, 25.6% of Hispanic students, and 25.0% of White students reported using alcohol or drugs the last time they had intercourse, black also report 15% less current alcohol use than White, and %15 more are currently sexually active, which would account for the combine result of alcohol+drug+sex. Overall, the prevalence of having consumed alcohol or used drugs before last sexual intercourse was higher among male than female students (27.6% male vs. 19.0% female). But again Male, in the same survey are showwn to consume more drug and alcoohol than female, with a similar gap in the general population, hence it is completely irrelvant to sexual behavior.

Girls who participate in girls-only activities are far less likely to experience a teenage pregnancy and less likely to be sexually active in general. Participating in competitive sports has also shown to have an effect for girls. "Female adolescents who participated in sports were less likely than their non-athletic peers to engage in sexual activity and/or report a pregnancy." Males interested in arts are also less likely to be involved in a pregnancy situation. It is unclear whether these correlations are causal or the reflection of the underlying bias of the considered population. The study that reported these findings did not take into account the sexual orientation of the subjects.

Effects of sexual activity
The American Academy of Pediatrics has identified the sexual behaviors of American adolescents as a major public health problem. The American Academy of Pediatrics expressed concerned about STD prevalence in sexually active teenagers and about the very high rate of teenage pregnancy in the United States, compared to other developed countries.

Chemical and hormonal
When engaging in sexual acts the body produces oxytocin, a chemical produced in the brain to promote feelings of connection and love. Oxytocin helps a mother bond with her infant during breast feeding and "surges through the bodies of men and women during orgasm." When a man achieves orgasm, his oxytocin levels can rise up to 500% of their normal levels. When "a man ejaculates, he bonds utterly with" his partner.

Physical health
According to Dr. Leonard Sax, a physician and psychologist, girls will often become intoxicated before engaging in sexual activities because it "numbs the experience for them, making it less embarrassing and less emotionally painful." Boys will use drugs and alcohol for different reasons than girls, however. Boys are more likely to use in order to relax and to prevent premature ejaculation. When teens become sexually active at 15 years of age or younger they are six times more likely to drink alcohol once a week or more, four times more likely to have smoked marijuana and three times more likely to be regular smokers of cigarettes. Other research also shows that risk behaviors often appear in clusters. If an adolescent is engaging in one risk behavior then there is a strong chance there may be others. For example, many teens are either using drugs or alcohol when they first have sexual intercourse.

According to a report prepared the US Department of Health and Human Services,

the younger the age of first sexual intercourse, the greater the risk of unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. This is because those who begin having sex at young ages are generally exposed to risk for a longer time, are less likely to use contraception, generally have more sexual partners, and tend to engage in higher risk sexual behaviors such as alcohol or drug use prior to sexual intercourse and having multiple concurrent sexual partners. It must be recognized as well that early intercourse is frequently not voluntary.

Psychological health
Emotional, social and cognitive development continues well past adolescence. With their still developing brains, teens do not yet possess the ability to either fathom the physical and emotional consequences of sex or to deal with them once they happen. As "teenagers are not mature enough to know all the ramifications of what they're doing," "early sexual activity - whether in or out of a romantic relationship - does far more harm than good." Teens who are sexually active are at greater risk of becoming dependent on boyfriends and girlfriends, incurring serious depression around breakups and cheating, and suffering from a lack of goals. When taking part in hookups "the kids don't even look at each other. It's mechanical, dehumanizing." This impersonality is harmful to both girls and boys however girls are especially at risk of becoming victims in casual sexual relationships. Girls are far more likely to feel used and abused than boys are after a typical hook up.

David Walsh, from the National Institute on Media and the Family, thinks that when adolescents engage in casual sexual relationships they do not develop skills such trust and communication that are key ingredients in healthy, long-lasting relationships. In purely sexual relationships adolescents pick up "a lot of bad habits" and don't learn "to trust or share or know how to disagree and make up." They become jaded and as a result later in life they have trouble forming adult relationships.

Casual attitudes amongst adolescents toward sex and oral sex in particular "reflect their confusion about what is normal behavior." When adolescents engage in casual sexual relationships they proceed toward adulthood with a lack of understanding about intimacy. James Wagoner, president of Advocates for Youth, worries that "if we are indeed headed as a culture to have a total disconnect between intimate sexual behavior and emotional connection, we're not forming the basis for healthy adult relationships."

When having causal sex teens are "pretending to say it's just sexual and nothing else. That's an arbitrary slicing up of the intimacy pie. It's not healthy." Depression, alcohol abuse, anorexia, and emotional disturbance can all afflict adolescents as a result. Even when teens are in a romantic relationship, sexual activities can become the focus of the relationship. Not only are such relationships less sustained, they are often not monogamous and they have lower levels of satisfaction than relationships that do not have sexual activities as their focus.

With regards to oral sex, it is almost always the boys who receive it and the girls who give it. When girls provide oral sex "they do so without pleasure, usually to please their boyfriend or to avoid the possibility of pregnancy." This paradigm has entitled boys and disabled girls putting girls at a disadvantage.

According to the report prepared for the DHHS:

"Most young people in the United States begin having sexual intercourse during their teenage years. Current data suggest that slightly more than half of females and nearly two-thirds of males have had intercourse by their 18th birthday. Initial sexual intercourse experiences are usually important (and sometimes defining) events in the lives of young people. Early timing of sexual initiation is important for two reasons.  First, the younger the age of first sexual intercourse, the more likely that the experience was coercive, and forced sexual intercourse is related to long lasting negative effects."

Doctor Sax also reports that boys are less likely to see sex as connected to an emotional relationship than girls. However, by the time a young man has reached his early twenties, his girlfriend or his wife will become his primary emotional caregiver." If he can not establish an emotional relationship with a woman, who does view sex as connected to intimacy, then he is more likely to become depressed, commit suicide or die from illness. With all the issues and problems relating to adolescent sex, according to the Medical College of Wisconsin, "ideally, they won’t be having sex, but if they are or intend to, the next best thing is that they understand the importance of protecting themselves against pregnancy, HIV and STDs"

Journalist Judith Levine believes that sexual activity among adolescents and even children is natural and causes little to no harm if contraception is used. Levine believes that since humans are sexual beings that even the smallest children will most likely end up taking part in sex rehearsal play with other children out of their own explorations and that it causes no harm.

Knowledge of sexuality
Most teens (70%) say they have gotten some or a lot of information about sex and sexual relationships from their parents. Other sources of information include friends at 53%, school, also at 53%, TV and movies at 51% and magazines at 34%. School and magazines were sources of information for more girls than boys, and teens "who were sexually active were much more likely to say they got information about sex from their friends and partners."

Contraceptive use
Of US teens aged 15-19 that are having sexual intercourse almost all (98%) have used at least one form of contraception. The most popular form, at 94% usage, are condoms and the birth control pill is second at 61%. Teen pregnancies in the United States decreased 28% between 1990 and 2000 from 117 pregnancies per every 1,000 teens to 84 per 1,000. Contraceptives lower the risk of conceiving a child, and if condoms are the method chosen they help prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, but they are not 100% effective.

Approaches to dealing with adolescent sexuality
One approach to dealing with the complexity of adolescent sexuality is to deny that it exists, and to give teenagers as little information as possible. This is based on the concept that introducing them to sexuality may cause them to become curious. However, a report issued by the Department of Health and Human Services has found the "most consistent and clear finding is that sex education does not cause adolescents to initiate sex when they would not otherwise have done so." The same report also found that

Family life or sex education in the public schools, which traditionally has consisted largely of providing factual information at the secondary school level, is the most general or pervasive approach to preventing pregnancy among adolescents.... Adolescents who begin having sexual intercourse need to understand the importance of using an effective contraceptive every time they have sex. This requires convincing sexually active teens who have never used contraception to do so. In addition, sexually active teens who sometimes use contraceptives need to use them more consistently (every time they have sex) and use them correctly.

Some Christian organizations have propagated the idea that sexual abstinence is the approach to take. This is based on commonly found Christian values of waiting for marriage before having sexual intercourse, or sexual intimacy. Some organizations promote what they consider to be "sexual purity", which encompasses not only abstaining from intercourse before marriage, but also abstaining from sexual thoughts, sexual touching, pornography, and actions that are known to lead to sexual arousal.

Some advocates have successfully worked toward the introduction of "abstinence-only" curricula. Under such instruction, teens are told that they should be sexually abstinent until marriage, and information about contraception is not provided. Opponents argue this approach denies teens needed, factual information and leads to unwanted pregnancies, abortions, and propagation of STDs, and that some abstinence-only programs provide misinformation about safe sex practices and abortion.

Some curricula are advocated on the grounds that they are intended to reduce sexual disease or out-of-wedlock or teenage pregnancy. Proponents of this view argue that sexual behavior after puberty is a given, and it is therefore crucial to provide information about the risks and how they can be minimized. They hold that conventional or conservative moralizing will only alienate students and thus weaken the message.

In turn, opponents of comprehensive sexuality education object that curricula which fail to teach moral behavior actually serve to prevent adolescents from making informed decisions; they maintain that curricula should include the claim that conventional (or conservative) morality is healthy and constructive, and that value-free knowledge of the body may lead to immoral, unhealthy and harmful practices.

In December of 2004, U.S. Congressman Henry A. Waxman of California released a report that provides several examples of inaccurate information being included in federally funded abstinence-only sex education programs.

A third approach to adolescent sexuality education is to incorporate teaching about the natural human desire to have sex. Deborah Tolman, director of the Center for Research on Gender and Sexuality and a Professor of Human Sexuality Studies at San Francisco State University, believes adolescents, like adults, are sexual beings and should be educated about the nuances of their sexual feelings, choices and behaviors.

The moral and philosophical debate over 'non-normal' sexual behavior, including early teenage sexual activity, can also be characterized as a moral panic, where people fear a total societal breakdown due to the introduction and acceptance of 'non-normal' sexual behavior.