Teens who remain virgins throughout high school may think they're missing out on some of the fun, but the reality is their sexually active peers are the ones missing out.

The study: A new study analyzed data from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth that was conducted in waves from 1979 to 2000 with 3,750 men and 3,620 women. It controlled for ethnicity and previous educational or economic disadvantage. About half the students were virgins at 18 and half were not. Students were surveyed at age 18 and again at age 38.

The results: When the two groups were evaluated 20 years after their high school graduation, the data showed that both the male and female high school students who remained virgins at least until age 18 enjoyed huge advantages as adults, compared to those who had had sex in high school:

1. They completed an average of one year more of higher education.
2. Their incomes were 20 percent higher.
3. They had about half the risk of divorce.

"It is very much as we suspected--that adolescent virginity has a significant impact on well-being in middle adulthood," said lead study author Reginald Finger, M.D. "We found, as well, that these better outcomes were not merely the result of avoiding teenage pregnancy or fatherhood. The outcomes are inherent to remaining abstinent. In addition, we found that female virgins were more likely than their non-virgin counterparts to have a positive financial net worth and were almost half as likely as non-virgins to use welfare benefits."

The research findings were published in the journal Adolescent and Family Health (May/2005).

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Why Do the Obese Earn Lower Salaries?

Studies have shown, time and again, that obese employees are paid less than normal-weight employees doing similar jobs. But why?

The results: Comparing the hourly pay of obese and non-obese workers with health insurance, and adjusting for factors such as education, experience and job type, researchers found:

• Obese insured workers earned significantly less -- almost US$3.50 per hour -- than non-obese insured workers in 1998.

• The gap in pay starts out modestly when these workers are young, but widens over time -- which indicates the pay scale of the obese worker rises more slowly than that of the non-obese with employer-funded health insurance.

• There was no significant different in pay in the hourly wages of obese and non-obese workers without on-the-job health insurance, a sign that the obese workers' lower pay is an issue of higher expected medical costs, rather than outright prejudice.

• There was no wage difference between obese and non-obese workers who received other kinds of benefits, such as retirement plans or life insurance, reinforcing the notion that the pay adjustment is due to greater health care costs.

These results provide the strongest evidence to date that the costs of employer-sponsored health insurance are passed on to obese workers through lower wages.

Sources:

National Bureau of Economic Research May 2005

Medical News Today May 9, 2005

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Comments:

Perhaps the financial consequences may be a helpful motivation toward a positive change in our lives and our children's lives.
Seemingly it's a benefit to have more "fun" before 18 and it might give more enjoyment to eat lots of (junk) food. But, the price is a reduced paycheck, increased chances of divorce, high medical costs and a shortened life span.

Interestingly, detoxification can help in loosing weight. More research is needed to look into the accumulation of toxins over time and the accumulation of extra pounds.

"I have a patient who has been on Detoxamin for about 6 months and wants to stay on it longer because in that time he has dropped 4 holes in his belt and wants to keep the weight off". - Dr. Cretti, Santa Barbara, CA