During your teens you become sexually mature. If you're a girl, you develop breasts and begin to get your period. If you're a boy, your penis and testicles become larger. If you have sex, you could get pregnant or get someone pregnant. Whether you choose to have sex or not, it is a good idea to know about safe sex and how sex affects your health. Besides pregnancy, having sex puts you at risk of getting a sexually transmitted disease, such as herpes or genital warts, or HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
The only way to be completely safe is not to have sex. If you choose to have sex, however, latex condoms are the best protection against sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Condoms are also a form of birth control to help prevent pregnancy.
- Sexual Health(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/
-
Especially for Teens: You and Your Sexuality(American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - http://www.medem.com/MedLB/article_detaillb.cfm?article_ID=ZZZTJ8CS77C&sub_cat=12
Also available in Spanish http://acog.org/publications/patient_education/sp042.cfm
- It’s Your (Sex) Life: Your Guide to Safe & Responsible Sex(Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation) - Large PDF file - http://www.kff.org/youthhivstds/upload/MTV_Think_IYSL_Booklet.pdf
- Talk About Sex(Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States) - Large PDF file - http://65.36.238.42/pubs/TalkAboutSex.pdf
- Viewing Adult-Themed TV Tied to Earlier Sex for Teens(05/04/2009, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_83773.html
- 'Degrading' Lyrics Linked to Teen Sex(02/24/2009, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_80955.html
- Douching Ups Sexually Transmitted Infection Risk(02/16/2009, Reuters Health) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_80462.html
- Estrogen Tests(American Association for Clinical Chemistry) - http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/estrogen/test.html
- Testosterone Test(American Association for Clinical Chemistry) - http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/testosterone/test.html
- Sexual Maturation (Delayed)(Merck & Co., Inc.) - http://www.merck.com/mmhe/print/sec23/ch271/ch271b.html
-
Abstinence(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/contraception/abstinence.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/sexual/abstinence_esp.html
- Especially for Teens: Birth Control(American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - http://www.medem.com/MedLB/article_detaillb.cfm?article_ID=ZZZBRRU487C&sub_cat=12
-
Homosexuality: Facts for Teens(American Academy of Family Physicians) - http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/children/teens/sexuality/739.printerview.html
Also available in Spanish http://familydoctor.org/online/famdoces/home/children/teens/sexuality/739.printerview.html
- Sex Education: Talking to Your Teen about Sex(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/sex-education/CC00032/METHOD=print
-
Sex: Making the Right Decision(American Academy of Family Physicians) - http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/children/teens/sexuality/276.printerview.html
Also available in Spanish http://familydoctor.org/online/famdoces/home/children/teens/sexuality/276.printerview.html
-
Talking to Your Partner about Condoms(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/contraception/talk_about_condoms.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/sexual/talk_about_condoms_esp.html
- Teen Talk: Commonly Asked Questions about Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs)(Office of Public Health and Science, Office of Population Affairs) - Links to PDF - http://www.opaclearinghouse.org/pdf/teentalk_vol2_std.pdf
-
Virginity: A Very Personal Decision(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/guys/virginity.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/sexual/virginity_esp.html
- Teen Sexual Behavior Calculator(University of Maryland Medical Center) - http://www.healthcalculators.org/calculators/teen_sexual_behavior.asp
-
Female Reproductive System(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/changing_body/female_repro.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/sexual/female_repro_esp.html
-
Male Reproductive System(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/changing_body/male_repro.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/sexual/male_repro_esp.html
-
ClinicalTrials.gov: Teen Sexual Behavior
(National Institutes of Health) - http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/term=(%22sex+behavior%22+OR+%22sexual+behavior%22+OR+%22sex+risk+behavior%22)+AND+(teen+OR+adolescent)
- Giving Teens Some Slack May Reduce Sexually Risky Behaviors Later(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/research/teens_freedom.html
- Most Teens Who Abstain Aren't Engaging in Oral Sex Instead(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/research/sexual_conduct.html
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: A brief, clinic-based, safer sex intervention for heterosexual African American... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19218185&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Health care access and sexually transmitted infection screening frequency among... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19218176&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: CDC reports trend toward reduced sexual risk behaviors among high... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19146059&tool=MedlinePlus
- Teen Sexual Health -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=adolescent[mh]+AND+(sexual+behavior[majr]+NOT+hiv+infections[majr])+AND+english[la]+AND+(jsubsetaim[text]+OR+jsubsetk[text]+OR+jsubsetn[text]+OR+patient+education+handout[pt]+OR+guideline[pt])+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- Sexual Health Glossary(American Social Health Association) - http://www.ashastd.org/learn/learn_glossary_A_D.cfm
- ACOG's Physician Directory(American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - http://www.acog.org/member-lookup/disclaimer.cfm
- KidsHealth(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/index_noflash.html
- Sexual Behaviors(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/HealthyYouth/sexualbehaviors/
- Sexual Health of Adolescents and Young Adults in the United States(Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation) - Links to PDF - http://www.kff.org/womenshealth/upload/3040_04.pdf
- Teen Development - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/teendevelopment.html
- Teen Health - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/teenhealth.html
- Teenage Pregnancy - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/teenagepregnancy.html
- Children and Teenagers - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/childrenandteenagers.html
- Sexual Health Issues - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/sexualhealthissues.html