According to the first study to directly link steamy programming to teen pregnancy, exposure to certain forms of entertainment has a corrupting influence on teens, leading them into early pregnancies. The study is being published in Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Researchers at the RAND, a nonprofit research organization, said their three-year study shows teenagers who watch a lot of television featuring flirting, necking, discussion of sex and sex scenes are much more likely than their peers to get pregnant or get a partner pregnant.

Linking racy television program viewing with risky sexual behavior by teens, the three-year study of nearly 700 teens – 12 to17-year-olds - found that those who viewed the most sexual content on TV were about twice as likely to be involved in a pregnancy as those who saw the least.

Anita Chandra, a behavioral scientist who led the research at RAND, said: “Our findings suggest that television may play a significant role in the high rates of teenage pregnancy in the United States. We’re not saying we’re establishing causation, but we are saying this is one factor that we were able to prospectively link to the teen pregnancy outcome.”

The study did not examine how different approaches to sex education factor into the effects of TV viewing on sexual behavior and pregnancy rates. Proponents of comprehensive sex education as well as programs that focus on abstinence said the findings illustrate the need to educate children better about the risks of sex and about how to protect themselves.