Printer-friendly version

A study, which focused on teens between the ages of 14 and 19 inclusive, used data from Statistics Canada’s National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth to draw correlations between drug use, drunkenness, time spent with a boyfriend or girlfriend and teen decisions about sexual activity.

A recent study by the Institute of Marriage and Family Canada reveals that teens who become intoxicated regularly and smoke marijuana are more likely to become sexually active. The study, which focused on teens between the ages of 14 and 19 inclusive, used data from Statistics Canada’s National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth to draw correlations between drug use, drunkenness, time spent with a boyfriend or girlfriend and teen decisions about sexual activity.

The study found that 60 percent of teen girls and 49 percent of teen boys who smoke marijuana are more likely to be sexually active.  Additionally, a direct relationship was found between the number of times teens become intoxicated and their likelihood of being sexually active. The study also revealed that strong associations exist between attempted suicide and sexual activity among teen girls.

Study researcher, Peter Jon Mitchell, said that the findings highlight what we all know: “Teens who are under the influence of drugs or alcohol are more likely to engage in risky sexual behavior,” said Mitchell. “This study reveals a ‘risk profile’ that may help parents as they nurture their teens through to adulthood. And it becomes all the more critical when we consider the correlation between attempting suicide and sexual activity, particularly among girls.”

Another study conducted by the Indiana University School of Medicine and Regenstrief Institute focuses on one of the consequences of teen sexual activity. The researchers followed 381 girls enrolled at ages 14 to 17 years and found that repeated infection with the organisms that cause chlamydia, gonorrhea and trichomoniasis also was very common. “Depending on the organism, within four to six months after treatment of the previous infection, a quarter of the women were re-infected with the same organism,” said Wanzhu Tu, Ph.D., associate professor of medicine at the IU School of Medicine and a Regenstrief Institute investigator.

Within two years, about three-quarters of participants with an initial sexually transmitted STI were diagnosed with a second STI, although not necessarily of the same type. Within four years of an initial STI, virtually all (92 percent) of the participants had a subsequent STI. “To our knowledge, this study provides the first data on the timing of the initial STI and subsequent STI following the onset of sexual activity in urban adolescent women,” said Dr. Tu.