CONCERNS about rises in promiscuity and pre-marital sex in modern society are unfounded, with monogamy still the dominant pattern of behaviour, research suggests.

The first global survey of sexual behaviour, published today in The Lancet, reveals that there is no universal trend towards earlier sexual intercourse, despite reports of increases in underage sex and teenage pregnancy.

The research, which included data from 59 countries, showed that most people had only one recent sexual partner even with shifts towards later marriage and cohabiting relationships in most parts of the world.

The findings support data from the Office of National Statistics, published last week, that showed Britain is a largely monogamous society, despite increasing rates of sexually transmitted disease (STDs) and the highest teenage pregnancy rate in Europe.

The ONS found that seven out of ten men and eight out of ten women in Britain have had only one sexual partner in the past year, while one in six men and one in twelve women have had no sexual partners.

The Lancet study suggests that people in developed countries are more likely to have multiple partners than those in poorer regions of the world.

“Most people are married, and married people have the most sex,” the authors say. “Sexual activity among young single people tends to be sporadic, but is greater in industrialised countries.” However, none of these data suggest a universal trend towards sex at a young age, they add.

Although females were found to lose their virginity earlier than males, there is evidence that the “gender gap” is narrowing, especially in industrialised countries, the researchers said.

Kaye Wellings, of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, the lead-researcher, said: “In Britain, the average age at which people lose their virginity is 16 for both men and women. The latest estimates suggest 12.5 per cent of boys and 6.9 per cent of girls have had sex before the age of 15, but these figures may be skewed by the tendency of boys to exaggerate sexual activity.”

In the majority of countries for which data were available, age at first intercourse had increased for women, and decreased for men, Professor Wellings said.

The ONS findings suggest that the dramatic increase in the number of sexually transmitted infections diagnosed in recent years is due to a minority of promiscuous people, with one in fourteen women and one in eight men reporting having more than one sexual partner in the past 12 months.

The rate of conception among women under 18 in England fell by 11 per cent last year, a report by the Healthcare Commission said this week.

But faster progress is needed if the Government’s target of a 50 per cent reduction by 2010 is to be reached, the State of Healthcare report said.

There was an overall increase of 3 per cent in STD infections from 2004 to 2005, according to the commission.

Reported cases of chlamydia trebled between 1996 and 2005, although this may be attributable in part to more accurate diagnosis. The incidence of gonorrhoea increased by more than half over the same period but there was a 13 per cent decrease between 2004 and 2005.

The highest incidence of STDs were among young adults, deprived or disadvantaged groups and some black and minority ethnic groups.

Single life

Condom failure was the most common reason why hormonal emergency contraception (the morning after pill) was used (45 per cent) followed by forgetting to take the Pill (22 per cent)

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