With increasing accessibility to the Internet in American homes, it is easy for teens to see something that they are not meant to see. Studies show that about 70% of all 15- to17-year-olds have accidentally come across online porn.1 And 73% of these cases were while surfing the Internet. Youth with high internet use, internet use outside their home, chat room use, and online risk behavior were more likely to have been exposed.2

The porn industry makes more than $97 billion world wide and $13 billion in the United States alone.2 As a result, porn is easily available to teens. Most males (>65%) and fewer females have voluntarily viewed porn.3,4 Most teens who have consumed porn feel that it influences others' sexual behaviors more than their own.5 However, watching sexually explicit material is not harmless and has negative effects on a teen. Exposure to porn is associated with feelings of shame, disgust and unrealistic ideas about sex. Porn can be addictive - similar to cocaine craving.5 Viewing porn is also associated with premarital sex and sexual activity at an early age. In a study of 967 teens, males with higher exposure to sexually explicit media were 1.5 times more likely than those without such exposure to have had oral sex and sexual intercourse after 2 years. And males who used multiple media for sexually explicit materials were almost 3 times more likely to have oral sex and sexual intercourse at follow up.4

Porn use is also linked to child abuse and crime. Child abuse is the second leading cause of child death in the US.6 Viewing child porn is related to child and adult sexual abuse as well as violent behavior. About 80% of people who buy child porn are active child abusers and 40% are past child molesters.7

So, what can families do to protect their children from the harmful effects of porn? Parents can protect their teens by encouraging them to participate in positive activities and set clear rules about Internet use. Use of filtering or blocking software at home can block as much as 90% of the porn websites on the Internet. Positive parent-child relationships have shown to lower the risk of online exposure to porn by half.8 Parents should talk to their teens about their online activities including chat room use. They should also discuss the harmful effects of porn with their teens. By taking these small steps, families can protect their children porn and guide their children towards a better future.

References:
1. Strasburger V. "Clueless": why do pediatricians underestimate the media's influence on children and adolescents? Pediatrics. 2006 Apr;117(4):1427-31.
2. Malamuth PhD, Huppin M. Pornography and teenagers: the importance of individual differences. Adolesc Med. 2005;16:315-326.
3. Brown JD, L'Engle KL. Sexual Attitudes and Behaviors Associated With U.S. Early Adolescents' Exposure to Sexually Explicit Media. Communication Research 2009;36(1):129-151.
4. Häggström-Nordin E, Hanson U, Tydén T. Associations between pornography consumption and sexual practices among adolescents in Sweden. Int J STD AIDS. 2005 Feb;16(2):102-7.
5. Garavan H, Pankiewicz J, Bloom A, Cho JK, Sperry L, et al. Cue-induced cocaine craving: neuroanatomical specificity for drug users and drug stimuli. Am J Psychiatry. 2000 Nov;157(11):1789-98.
6. Johnson CF. Child maltreatment 2002: recognition, reporting and risk. Pediatr Int. 2002 Oct;44(5):554-60.
7. Kim C. From fantasy to reality: The link between viewing child pornography and molesting children. Child Sexual Exploitation Update 2004;1(3):1-4.
8. Mitchell KJ, Finkelhor D, Novak J. The exposure of youth to unwanted sexual material on the Internet: A national survey of risk, impact, and prevention. Youth & Society 2003;34:330-358.