British researchers found a gene that can tell when people will lose their virginity. This pattern, which contains 38 genes, is reportedly connected with risk-taking behavior, puberty and the number of offspring they will likely have in the future.
The study was published earlier this month in the journal Nature Genetics and included 125,000 volunteers aged 40 to 69. According to the research, social and cultural factors undoubtedly play a role in people's first sexual intercourse, but genes are also contributors.
Scientist isolate 'loose wimmen' gene! #Genes help predict when we lose our virginity https://t.co/kWli5Ses6h via @usatoday #DNA
— Jane Macdougall (@janemactweet) April 19, 2016
Aside from sexual behavior, genes also affect the beginning of puberty. People who have early sex and had babies when they were still young will likely end up having plenty of children. When this happens, their genes spread wider.
Earlier puberty in teenagers also lead to lower educational attainment, larger risk of developing health problems and increased mortality in women. Teens in the United States have a high pregnancy rate, but it has recently decreased to 46.8 percent from 54 percent in 1991 thanks to intervention and parents' advice about sex and birth control, NBC News reported.
Sex Education Drops
Genes and a teenager's environment may serve as contributors to early sexual relations, but sex education is equally important as young people progress through life. However, despite sex education's significance, a study from the non-profit organization Guttmacher Institute revealed that 35 percent of boys and girls didn't learn birth control methods at home or school, according to the Indian Express.
The findings saw that only 55 percent of teenage boys received information about birth control methods from the previous 61 percent rate. As for teenage girls, only 60 percent of them learned about birth control methods from the 70 percent previously recorded.
Sex Education Nowadays
This month, it was reported that teenagers aged 15 to 19 years old in the U.S. get lesser sex education. The study, which was conducted by The Guttmacher Institute in New York, based the findings on data collected from 2006 and 2010 and between 2011 and 2013, per Reuters.
Some of the topics that teenagers don't learn are birth control methods, refusing sexual intercourse and STDs, AIDS and HIV prevention. Brian Goesling, from the Mathematica Policy Research, said one of the reasons behind the issue is because schools are focusing more on academic achievement and student excellence. Thus, there's little time and effort dedicated to formal sex education.
Sex Ed As A Statutory Subject
A teachers' union in England called the NAHT suggested that the government should make sex education a statutory subject of the national core curriculum, especially in the primary and secondary levels, BBC reported.
Authorities have growing concerns over the increasing sexualized culture of British youth. The internet, especially social media pages, is also a hub for sexual materials, which young people can freely view with just a few clicks.
