Health Risks:
The younger you are when you start having intercourse, the more likely it is that you'll get cervical cancer when you're older. The reason why is still not known but it might be that there is more chance of exposure to things like Human Papilloma Virus (a type of genital wart) that seems to be associated with an increased risk of cervical cancer. Also the younger you have sex, presumably the more sex you'll have, the more chance you have of being exposed to the virus.
STDs: There is at least some theoretical concern about chlamydia. There's a junction between two different types of cells on your cervix. In older women this junction is further up inside the cervical canal. In young woman it's further down on the surface of the cervix. It's thought that that's a susceptible spot for chlamydia.
Pregnancy: As far as pregnancy is concerned it's probably not a good idea to have children when you're 12 or 13 years old when you're not finished growing yet. You're more likely to have a premature baby, the younger you are when you're pregnant.
If you've finished growing by the time you're 14 or 15, your body's probably about as prepared as it's ever going to be for pregnancy. It's not the physical stuff that doctors worry about at this age but there are social and emotional concerns. The bottom line is you give up being a teenager when you become pregnant. How can you finish your adolescent development when you're responsible for another human being? How do cope with poverty and with family support or lack of it?
The Numbers:
Approximately 50 per cent of Canadian 17 year-olds have had sexual intercourse.
Fifty-seven per cent of 17 year-old boys and 45 per cent of 17 year-old girls used a condom the last time they had sexual intercourse.
More young people are becoming infected with AIDS. Between 1975 and 1984, the median age of HIV infection in Canada was 29.6 years. Between 1985 and 1990, the median age of infection was estimated to be 24.5 years.
Over 36,000 cases of chlamydia were reported in Canada in 1995. Among women, girls aged 15-19 have the highest rates of infection for chlamydia and gonorrhea.
One in five teenage girls will become pregnant before reaching the age of 20 (source: Statistics Canada).
Teenage mothers and their babies have a higher rate of mortality and morbidity, including increased risk of low birth weight and premature birth.
Research in Ontario has shown that, in communities where teenagers do have access to clinical services for contraception, along with sexuality education, there are lower rates of teenage pregnancy.
Wrap Up:
The best way to have a great sex relationship is to communicate, not to be co-dependent, and to be respectful. If you feel shameful maybe it's too early for you.
Child rearing is the main thing that may come out of sex, so you better make sure you're ready for a child if you're going to consider sex. You need to communicate your religious and philosophical views about child rearing with your partner before considering a sexual relationship.
There isn't a right age to be sexually active.... It's a personal decision.
Sex isn't medicine. It's not going to fix a relationship. It's not going to preserve anything and if it's not a good relationship in the first place, it's not going to last.
