Trends and Recent Estimates: Contraceptive Use among U.S. Teens. Child Trends Research Brief. Publication #2006-04.

The only completely effective way for teenagers to avoid early and unintended pregnancies and STIs is to abstain from sex. However, almost half of teens are sexually experienced. In 2005, 47 percent of teens reported that they had ever had sexual intercourse.3 Those teens who engage in sex can decrease their risks of pregnancy and STIs by using contraceptives more effectively and consistently and by combining use of a condom with use of a hormonal contraceptive method (e.g., the birth control pill). While hormonal methods are more effective than are condoms in preventing pregnancy, condoms are the most effective contraceptives for preventing STIs.6 Unfortunately, teenagers are not perfect users of either condoms or hormonal contraceptives.2,11