Study Disputes Oral Sex and ‘Technical Virginity’ Myth

April 1, 2008

Over the last few years the media has popularized the idea that youth are engaging in oral sex as a way to ‘technically remain virgins’. A recent study conducted at the Guttmacher Institute in New York and published in the Journal of Adolescent Health disputes this idea. The study found that engaging in oral sex is much more common among youth who are also having vaginal sex. The youth in this study (2,271 males and females aged 15-19) began having oral sex at about the same time as having vaginal sex. Laura Lindberg, the primary researcher of this study, points out the rising rates of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) among American youth, and that they need to be aware that oral sex also puts them at risk for acquiring STIs.

For more information, please visit the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) News Room (CFSH is the Canadian Member of IPPF).