Teens believe oral sex is safer, more acceptable to peers
Young adolescents believe that oral sex is less risky to their health and emotions than vaginal sex, more prevalent among teens their age and more acceptable among their peers. They are also more likely to try oral sex, according to a UCSF study published in the April 2005 issue of Pediatrics.
“These findings suggest that adults should discuss more than one type of sexual practice when they counsel teens,” said Bonnie Halpern-Felsher, PhD, associate professor of adolescent medicine at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). She conducted a survey of 580 ethnically diverse Northern California ninth-graders in the first study to investigate adolescents’ perceptions of the consequences of having oral sex as opposed to vaginal sex.
The survey showed that these young teens considered oral sex to be significantly less risky to their health than vaginal sex. The adolescents believed that oral sex also was less likely to have negative social and emotional consequences, such as a bad reputation, getting into trouble, feeling bad about themselves, feeling guilty, or having a relationship with a partner become worse.
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Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 4 Apr 2005
