Teens get freaky

Every two years, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey teens in grades 9-12 to determine which activities they are taking part in that could shorten their life span. Among those activities is sex. The most recent report shows results of the 2007 survey. When Butte County Public Health Officer Mark Lundberg compared the survey to results from 1991, he said he was surprised to see the numbers had decreased in several categories over the years. Here is a sample of what was discovered:

47.8 % had had sex

7.1 % had had sex for the first time before they were 13

14.9 % had had four or more sexual partners during their life (higher among males, 17.9 %, than females, 11.8 %)

35 % were “currently sexually active,” meaning they’d had sex with at least one person during the three months before the survey

61.5 % of currently sexually active teens reported that they had used a condom the last time they had sex

22.5 % of currently sexually active teens had drunk alcohol or used drugs before their last sexual encounter

89.5 % had ever been taught in school about AIDS or HIV

12.9 % of students had been tested for HIV

Source: CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System