SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) - A new study led by UCSF delves into why some teens have sex early and others wait until they are older.
The study found that teens from close-knit neighborhoods and families are more likely to delay their first sexual encounter until after age 13, lead author Dr. Camila Cribb Fabersunne, pediatrician at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals, told KCBS Radio's Patti Reising on this week's "As Prescribed."
"Most Americans have sex by the age of 20," said Dr. Cribb Fabersunne. "Our concern is that when we do this early, it increases a young person's subsequent risk of having sexually transmitted infections, becoming a parent at an early age, and it actually can impact a young person's confidence or social relationships, their education and their socioeconomic status later.
And so we look at it as a risk factor for later adult health outcomes if a young person is having sex at a very early age."
For the study, published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, researchers asked 4,001 adolescents from 751 neighborhoods and 115 schools in Alabama, California and Texas whether they had sex by 10th grade. They surveyed the students, as well as their families and teachers, about the quality of relationships at home and in their schools and neighborhoods. Questions included how likely families and neighbors were to spend time together and help one another, and how much students trusted one another and their teachers.
The study found that children whose parents restricted their dating were 55% less likely to have sex by 10th grade, as were kids who spent less time alone when home (8% less likely) and whose families reported being cohesive
(7% less likely).
Dr. Cribb Fabersunne said the findings show the importance of families and neighborhoods in protecting youth from risky sexual behaviors.
"What we found is that family cohesion or family connectedness can be beneficial," she said. "We also found that one of the ways that parents restrict their young person from spending time with others alone or others of the opposite gender alone can be protective. And we also found that when parents restrict their dating behaviors of their youngsters, that actually can delay sexual debut."
Additionally, the study found that children from close-knit neighborhoods were 10% less likely to have sex by 10th grade, while those in neighborhoods that were socioeconomically disadvantaged and with lower educational levels were 24% and 23%, respectively, more likely to have sex by 10th grade. There were no school factors associated with having sex by 10th grade.
Dr. Cribb Fabersunne said it's important for parents to know that the support they provide for their children actually matters and that they do have an impact on their children's behaviors.
"So if I'm a parent who is able to really say, 'Here are the guardrails on your dating life, we're going to have a conversation about it, I'm going to be able to hold you accountable to it,' that young person is going to see some of those benefits of that structure and of that support system that may prevent them from finding themselves in a place where they're going to have premature sex," she said.
Messages and education about sexual behavior often come from school, she added, but the study suggests that public health officials and educators may want to put more resources into family and neighborhood strategies.
"If we can get our society to invest in parents and families, invest in resources in a local neighborhood that are going to support those families, we might have more bang for our buck and we might be able to prevent more young people from starting their sexual journey in a way that is going to be healthy, supportive, and on their own terms, and hopefully mitigate the downstream risks of having done that earlier than may have been the most healthy," said Dr. Cribb Fabersunne.
Listen to this week's "As Prescribed" to learn more. You can also listen to last week's episode to hear how early action on arthritis can help stave off the worst symptoms, here .
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"As Prescribed" is sponsored by UCSF.
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