6 A number of studies suggest that sexual activity among inner-city youth begins at a much younger age than the national average. One survey among inner-city boys specified an average age for first intercourse of 11.8 years. Twenty-three percent of the boys surveyed maintained that their first experience of intercourse occurred before their 10th birthday. Over 80 percent of male and female school dropouts report being sexually active. We can safely assume that more than a few children currently in our elementary schools are being inducted, either by force or by choice, into sexual activities.
Anal intercourse is an even riskier activity.
One study found this act to be 2.8 times more likely to transmit HIV than vaginal intercourse. Although anal intercourse has often been associated with homosexual men, it is certainly not limited to that group. As these numbers indicate, teenagers are not taking the new dangers of sexual activity into account when pursuing sexual ventures. Despite the growing public awareness of HIV and AIDS, the rates of premarital intercourse among female teenagers between the years 1985 and 1988 grew 44 to 52 percent, an increase not seen since the early 1970s. 10 Sexually active teenagers currently can reduce their risk of infection by using condoms, though they cannot provide 100 percent protection against HIV, infection by other sexually transmitted diseases, or unwanted pregnancy.