Cue the presses! Teen sex is bad! A new study claims that adolescent trysts could negatively impact brain development, increase the likelihood of becoming depressed and up anxiety levels ... that is if the teens in question are male hamsters.
However, judging from some of the media coverage out there on this study, similar to celebrities, hamsters are "Just Like Us." According to the LiveScience article, which was also picked up by Fox News:
The uproar that followed a November episode of Fox's "Glee" in which two teen couples had sex for the first time may have some scientific legs. New research shows sex during the adolescent years could affect mood and brain development into adulthood.
We can ignore the fact that the alleged "uproar" was ignited by the conservative watchdog group, Parents Television Council, that it addressed an episode that (barely) showed teens engaging in consensual, safe sex and that the study was looking exclusively at male hamsters. However, what can't be ignored is the fact that the entire approach to covering this study is utterly misguided.
The study, which originated out of Ohio State University, examined three groups of male hamsters, reported LiveScience. The first mated with adult female hamsters when they reached 40-days-old (the hamster teen years), the second group held out until the ripe old age of 80 days and the last group remained abstinent. The researchers then looked at the general health and wellness of all of the hamsters at 120 days of age and found a number of negatives for those that lost their rodent V-cards early on. The ones who had sex earliest showed symptoms of depression and anxiety -- measured by their enthusiasm for swimming vigorously in a pool of water and exploring a maze, respectively. The precocious maters also exhibited less complexity in certain parts of the brain and had smaller reproductive tissues.
This study certainly has implications for hamsters and perhaps others in the animal kingdom. And if a lot of further research is conducted, maybe there is something to learn about humans too. However, as it stands, this study tells us little to nothing about non-rodent teenagers. And it definitely doesn't tell us that teen sex hinders brain development or causes "bad moods" as some headlines might lead us to believe.
It's clear that sexual experiences during adolescence impact teenagers, both emotionally and physically. Sometimes these experiences are positive and sometimes they're quite negative. However, focusing on the science of brain development and the potential "dangers" of teenage sexual encounters misses the mark and I fear might just provide an excuse for pushing abstinence-only education (both at schools and at home) and ignoring the realities of teen lives.
As of a 2009 CDC survey, 46 percent of high school students had engaged in sexual intercourse. (And this is in a country that until this past year was only awarding federal funds to abstinence-only sex education.) Telling teens that they shouldn't have sexual experiences until they're at least 18 (or 19 or 20 ...) because they might damage their brains isn't an effective tactic. It seems more akin to sex education as portrayed in the movie "Mean Girls." "Don't have sex! Cause you will get pregnant -- and die," says the gym-teacher-turned-sex-educator in the film as he stand in front of a chalkboard with the words Safe Sex and Abstinence written down in all caps. Classically (and realistically) the class looks unimpressed and a little bit confused.
Instead of shaming and confusing our kids -- or ignoring the issue of sex altogether -- we need to push for more open and honest dialogue in our homes and our schools. Parents should be talking to their children about sex in whatever way they feel comfortable doing so, sharing their values and encouraging their teenagers to make responsible and informed decisions. When teens are properly educated about sex and the potential emotional ramifications that come along with it, they'll be more likely to make good decisions; when there is an open atmosphere at home, if they make a misstep they'll feel comfortable opening up about it.
And when it comes to dialogue and emotional connection, we're way ahead of hamsters.
Follow Emma Gray on Twitter: www.twitter.com/emmaladyrose
Not only why I have always liked hampsters, but...why I have been depressed and anxious for 44 years!!
At 58, it is nice to know that science has come to my aide to explain my weirdness.
90% of American teenagers don't have the ability to fend for themselves let alone take care of a child and they shouldn't be engaging in these types of behaviours.
Even though we weren't married at the time, my wife was my first and only as I for her and we are still married 25 years plus later.
My 2 sons (teenagers) follow my guidelines, you are free do what you want at your own peril or detrimate of the unwanted child, but my boys do what I say.
And no we are not religious, I am atheist and my wife is agnostic.
Like every other happy marriage on the planet, non-reproductive sex is an essential part of the glue that holds the relationship together. Whether you like it or not, recreational sex is part of the nuclear family. If its bad or non-existant the marriage won't last.
Which brings us to an interesting question ... how important do you view your marriage vows to be?
I take them very seriously. I said "till death do we part" and I *meant* it. I couldn't possibly have said it if I hadn't done enough, ah, research to know this was a promise I could keep.
We get thirsty.
Now drinking 8 glasses a day will do over-hydrate you so that you will be vastly less likely to drink things like soda as you are already sloshing. And drinking less soda is indeed good for you. But the point is to drink less soda, not consume so much water that you have to ingest salt tablets to stay in equilibrium.
As I taught my sons, keep your pants on until your able to support someone elses life. Until then, if you feel the need, go to your room, close the door and don't forget the tissues.
We are not going to stop teen sex, just like you are not going to stop sex between adults. There are plenty of adults who should not have children for the same reasons young adults should not have sex! What needs to be done is to educate not just on sexuality but relationships and social maturity. Young people need to be able to deal with their life and they need loving support. Hopefully this will help put off sexual activity until the young adult is able to deal with it and be responsible.
Oh yeah the study. Thanks for comparing human behavior to rodents. Just hink our gov't maybe spent money on this. No matter what a few thousand years of human survival/history tells us.