Sex on TV linked to teen pregnancy

　　Exposure to some forms of entertainment is a corrupting influence on children, leading teens who watch sexy programs into early pregnancies and children who play violent video games to adopt aggressive behavior, researchers said on Monday. 　　

    Exposure to some forms of entertainment is a corrupting influence on children, leading teens who watch sexy programs into early pregnancies and children who play violent video games to adopt aggressive behavior, researchers said on Monday.

    The researchers recruited adolescents aged 12 to 17 and surveyed them three times between 2001 and 2004, asking about television viewing habits, sexual behavior and pregnancy.

    In findings that covered 718 teenagers, there were 91 pregnancies. Those with the highest exposure to sex on television were twice as likely to be involved in a pregnancy than those with the least exposure.

    "Adolescents receive a considerable amount of information about sex through television and that programming typically does not highlight the risks and responsibilities of sex," said Anita Chandra, the lead author and a behavioral scientist at RAND, the nonprofit research organization that funded the study.

    "Our findings suggest that television may play a significant role in the high rates of teenage pregnancy in the United States," she said.

    Researchers said the study demonstrated that programs with sexual content create the perception there is little risk of sex without contraception.

    The rate of teenage pregnancies has increased for the first time in 15 years, measuring 41.9 births per 1,000 Americans aged 15 to 19 years in 2006, according to the Center for Prevention and Disease Control (CDC).

    "The amount of sexual content on television has doubled in recent years, and there is little representation of safer sex practices in those portrayals," said Chandra.

    The findings have implications for broadcasters, parents and health care providers, she added.

    The US has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates among industrialized nations, with nearly one million adolescent females becoming pregnant each year, with the majority of these pregnancies unplanned, according to RAND.(Agencies)

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