Closeness to mother delays sex for teenage girls

Sex is an activity which most people are introduced to at some point in time, and while for many it can come early on in a world with a lot of connectivity, there are some who go for it at a later stage in life.

Lack of awareness and conversations about the subject have led to people having their first sexual encounter as teenagers, leading to several issues like rising teenage pregnancies, but a new study suggests that a healthy relationship with mothers prevents girls from having sex at an early stage.

The study conducted with close to 3000 girls and boys studied their relationships with parents and their behaviour between ages of 12 and 16, and found that girls who had better quality communication and closeness with their mothers were 44% less likely to have sex in this time period.

The observation that a good relationship with mothers is a protective layer for girls against early sexual initiation seems in line with earlier research which held poor parental relationships responsible for risky sexual behaviour.

Researchers suggested that this might be because mothers are primary providers of sex education and are more comfortable talking to daughters than sons.