The results of a recent CDC survey reveal that approximately 96 percent of adults aged 20-59 have had ever had sex. Of all those surveyed, almost 82 percent had sex before or at 20 years of age. Of those who ever had sex, approximately 85 percent did so before or at age 20 - most of which was premarital. (An earlier Guttmacher study found that by age 20, 77 percent of respondents had sex, and 75 percent had premarital sex.)

This isn't surprising in a culture that promotes hook ups, cohabitation, contraception, and abortion. What is surprising is that 100 percent of adults haven't had sex by age 20.

Some might argue that there isn't anything wrong here, that this is normal and healthy behavior.

The problem with that argument is that this behavior is not healthy - it results in disease transmission, demand for abortion, out-of-wedlock pregnancy, broken hearts, and unhappiness.

According to the Office of National AIDS Policy, one quarter of all new HIV infections occur in people under the age of 21. Approximately 75 percent of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) infections, which increase the risks of cervical and oropharyngeal cancers, occur in people aged 15-24.

Disease isn't the only problem - there are mental consequences of premarital sex as well. For example, sexually active teens are more likely to attempt suicide than those who are not. Adolescent women who engage in premarital sex are three times more likely to experience depression as those who don't. Abortion also poses a threat, as it is associated with an increased risk of depression and anxiety.

These are just a few of the problems associated with premarital sex - there are numerous other problems as well.

While this behavior may be "normal" in a sexually corrupt culture, it's anything but healthy. There isn't a healthy reason for young people to engage in premarital sex to begin with - in fact; it is a threat to public health.

While contraceptives don't cause teens to have sex, they do enable them to do so, a point those on both sides of the issue seem to miss.

There is a healthy fear in the pro-life movement that addressing contraception may be counterproductive in the efforts to win public opinion. This fear is partially based upon the idea that the public won't tolerate a ban on contraception.

Unfortunately, this well founded fear has often resulted in near silence about the negative aspects of contraceptives, including the role it plays in adolescent sexual decisions.

How do contraceptives impact on these decisions? Simply put, contraceptives (and abortion) act as an "insurance policy" against unplanned pregnancy (and birth), lowering the perceived risks of premarital sexual activity. This "policy" enables people who would normally not engage in sexual activity to do so. Unfortunately for many, these policies often fail, resulting in pregnancy and disease transmission.

Religious beliefs also have a role in the avoidance of this issue - many non-Catholic denominations approve of contraceptive use among married couples, so they are reluctant to even speak out on the issue to begin with. The thinking is that the prohibition against premarital sex already covers the use of contraceptives, and that use by unmarried teens is implicitly forbidden. Yet that ignores the public health crisis that exists in part due to easy access to contraceptives by teens.

Many pro-life advocates do not see contraceptive use as an urgent problem to address. Yet easy access to contraceptives by teens, without parental consent, enables many of them to become sexually active to begin with. And in the near future, many of these same teens will end up at abortion and STD clinics.

Requiring parental consent for contraceptives has the potential to preclude abortion and disease transmission for teens that are not yet sexually active. It can also put a serious dent in the health crisis posed by teen sexual activity.

It's a shame that so many people have sex by age 20 - not only for what some may call puritanical reasons, but for the fact that this only perpetuates the long standing health crisis fostered by teen sexual activity. But until the public learns about the many downsides of teen access to contraceptives, the crisis isn't going to improve significantly.

(c) 2007 Ruben Obregon

h/t to Tim from prolifeblogs.com for pointing out the errors in the original commentary