@maxdancona,
Our young friend is talking about doing something that only 6 percents of 14 years old girls are dumb enough to do now. Good going encouraging her to go ahead with her plans
• The median age at first intercourse is 16.9 years for boys and 17.4
years for girls.6
before age 14 has decreased in recent years, from a high of 8
females aged 15-19) decreased 28 percent between 1990 and
percent of girls and 11 percent of boys in 1995 to a low of 6 percent
of girls and 8 percent of boys in 2002.7
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http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:lzCzqBg8L1cJ:www.kff.org/youthhivstds/upload/U-S-Teen-Sexual-Activity-Fact-Sheet.pdf+average+age+for+sexual+intercourse+in+US&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESg2eMz8qP2KIdITJE9WXoWMq_i3nKGlNG6bIB7ljf5cLdpOc5Pbpq5pp1H8bQ5HNiDaZziKe8MoyolTErortJ-gs1UMTHpRmUEIgozi1YFMON-PkKyXlWrz4Y09gEaGaKwtXcRp&sig=AHIEtbRecMlKiPNKHi-mx_a1at2bZB7PQA
Over the last decade, the percentage of all high school students
(9-12th grade) who report ever having had sexual intercourse has
declined. At the same time, among teens who are sexually active,
rates of contraceptive use – including condom use – have
increased. Both factors help to account for the decrease in teen
pregnancy rates in recent years. Yet, despite these trends, about a
third (34%) of young women become pregnant at least once before
they reach the age of 20 – about 820,000 a year,1 and
approximately four million teens contract a sexually transmitted
disease (STD) each year.2
General Sexual Activity
• Fewer than half of all 9-12th grade students report having had
sexual intercourse, reflecting a decline during the last decade
from 53 percent in 1993 to 47 percent in 2003. Males are more
likely than females to report having had sexual intercourse.3, 4
(See Table 1)
Percentage of 9-12th Graders, by Gender,
Who have had Sexual Intercourse, 1993-2003
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Source: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2003 Youth Risk Behavior Survey.
• The percentage of high school students who have had sexual
intercourse increases by grade. In 2003, 62 percent of 12th
graders had had sexual intercourse, compared with 33 percent of
9th graders.4
• Data about teens’ sexual experiences other than intercourse are
more limited. In 1995, 53 percent of teen males aged 15-19 said
they had been masturbated by a female (an increase from 1988);
49 percent had received oral sex; 39 percent had given oral sex;
and 11 percent had engaged in anal sex.5
First Sexual Intercourse
• The median age at first intercourse is 16.9 years for boys and 17.4
years for girls.6
Pregnancy and Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs)
• The percentage of teens 15-19 who had initiated sexual intercourse
• The U.S. teen pregnancy rate (the number of pregnancies per 1,000
before age 14 has decreased in recent years, from a high of 8
females aged 15-19) decreased 28 percent between 1990 and
percent of girls and 11 percent of boys in 1995 to a low of 6 percent
of girls and 8 percent of boys in 2002.7
The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation is a non-profit, private operating foundation dedicated to providing information and analysis on health care issues to
policymakers, the media, the health care community, and the general public. The Foundation is not associated with Kaiser Permanente or Kaiser Industries.
2400 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, CA 94025 Phone: (650) 854-9400 Facsimile: (650) 854-4800
www.kff.org
Washington, DC Office: 1330 G Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005 Phone: (202) 347-5270 Facsimile: (202) 347-5274
Table 1
53
53
56
54
52
50
50
48
52
49 48
48
47
46
49
48
45
43
Boys
Girls
1993
1995
1997
1999
2001
2003
Sexual Partners and Relationships
• The percentage of 9-12th grade students who report having had four
or more sexual partners has declined in recent years from 19
percent in 1993 to 14 percent in 2003. Males (18%) are more likely
than females (11%) to report having had four or more sexual
partners.3, 4
• Most (74%) sexually active females aged 15-19 have partners who
are the same age or 1-3 years older; for a quarter of girls, their first
partners were 4 or more years older. The younger a girl is when she
has sex for the first time, the greater the average age difference is
likely to be between her and her partner.7
• Teen girls with older male partners are more likely to be sexually
active8, less likely to use contraceptives9, and more likely to face an
unintended pregnancy.10
Abstinence
• In 2003, 66 percent of high school students were currently abstinent,
meaning they had not engaged in sexual intercourse over the last
3 months.4
• Among teens aged 15-17 who have never had sexual intercourse,
94 percent said that concern about pregnancy influenced their
decision to wait. Similar numbers said that concern about HIV/AIDS
(92%), other STDs (92%) and feeling ‘too young’ (91%)
contributed to their choice.11
Contraception and Protection
• Nearly all (98%) teens 15-19 who have had sex report using at least
one method of birth control. The most common methods were
condoms (94%) and birth control pills (61%).7
• In 2002, three quarters (75%) of females and 82 percent of males
15-19 used some method of contraception the first time they had
sex. This has increased from previous years.7
• Nearly one fifth (17%) of sexually active females 15-19 and 9
percent of males the same age said they used no method of
contraception the last time they had sex. 7
• Condom use among 9-12th grade students has increased over the
last decade: In 1993, 53 percent reported using a condom the last
time they had sexual intercourse, compared with 63 percent who
did so in 2003. 3, 4
• Among sexually active teens 15-17, important factors in choosing a
method of birth control include “how well it protects against HIV
and other STDs” (98%) “how well it prevents pregnancy” (94%),
and what “side effects” may exist (93%).12