Parents, We Need to Talk to Our Teens About Sexting

A recently released study found that the number of teens “sexting” is on the rise. The study, published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics, revealed that teenagers are sending and receiving sexually explicit texts at a pretty alarming rate. At least, in comparison to what many adults may have thought. If you have a tween or teen, you need to know the stats — and what you can do about this growing problem.

The current study reviewed the data from 39 previous studies. These included 110,380 teen participants who were 12 to 18-years-old. With all that data, what did the researchers find? Well…it looks like teens are definitely sexting.

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Fifteen percent of teens report sending a sext, according to the study. Along with this stat, the study found that 27% of teens had received a sexual text.

Even though those numbers might not seem all-out crazy, keep in mind that more than one-quarter of kids (some of which may be as young as 12-years-old) have gotten a sext. But that’s not the only shocking stat. Nope. The study found that 12% of adolescents have forwarded a sext. That is, they’ve forwarded a sext without the originals ender’s permission. Yikes!

The statistics from this study show the clear need for parents to talk to their teens about sexting. Is it easy? No. is it comfortable? Probably not. But it could save your child pain, embarrassment and even bullying later on.

What do you think about this study? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

—Erica Loop

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