Close parental links 'best deterrent to teenage sex'

Warning teenagers against promiscuity has little impact but a close mother-child relationship appears to be the most effective deterrent to adolescent sex, research in America indicates.

Simply talking to teenagers was not enough to get the message across. Even when mothers strongly disapproved of their offspring having sex, 30 per cent of girls and 45 per cent of boys did not accept their advice. The study found that well-educated mothers who maintained good links with the parents of their children's friends had most success in preventing their children becoming sexually active at an early age.

Professor Robert Blum, director of the University of Minnesota's Centre for Adolescent Health and Development Programme, said: "Parents say they talk until they're blue in the face and their kids still don't listen. Kids will pay attention to their parents' values and beliefs on sex. But talk alone does not get the message through."

What did appear to make a difference, particularly for younger teenagers and older boys, was a close, caring relationship with their mothers, Professor Blum said.

The research – the National Longitudinal Survey of Adolescent Health – is the most comprehensive study of the subject. Three thousand pairs of mothers and teenagers were interviewed.

Researchers found that mothers' perceptions were often inaccurate. Only half were aware their teenagers were sexually active. "We need to be more tuned in to what's happening in our children's lives," Professor Blum said. "Otherwise, how can we give them clear, effective messagesabout how to deal with the choices they will inevitably face?"