Taken from: http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080820/statscan_sex_080820/20080820?hub=TopStories


A new study from Statistics Canada suggests fewer teenagers are having sex, especially teen girls.

The 2005 survey found 43 per cent of teens reported having sex, down from 47 per cent in 1996-1997.

The reason for the slide seems to be the number of young women that reported they were sexually active. Forty-three per cent of young women aged 15 to 19 reported having sex at least once, compared to 51 per cent in 1996-1997.

However, the number of teenage boys that were sexually active remained steady at 43 per cent.

Michelle Rotermann, the author of the StatsCan study, said the figures indicate the sexual behaviours of young women are changing and coming in line with those of young men.

In regards to safe-sex practices, condom use was up for girls from 65 percent in 1996-1997 to 70 per cent in 2005 while boys using condoms stayed the same at around 80 per cent. However condom use was more common among teens aged 15 to 17 than among those aged 18 and 19 in 2005.

"Individuals who are in longer-term relationships perceived their risks to be lower. As such, 18 and 19-year-olds likely perceive their risks to be lower, so they're less likely to use a condom than their younger counterparts," Rotermann said in an interview with CTV Newsnet from Ottawa on Wednesday.

Early sexual activity among teens also fell. In 2005, 8 per cent of teens reported having sex before they were 15, down from 12 per cent in 1996/1997. Once again, the proportion fell among girls, but there wasn't a significant change among boys.

Rotermann says this figure has large implications since teens who engage in sexual activity before the age of 15 have an increased or longer term risk of exposure to sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancy.