Teens love television. They adore programmes like Sex and the City and Friends. They devour soaps too. So a study showing that watching sexual content influences teens' behaviour is bad news for Irish parents. The study of 2,000 American 12- to 17-year-olds found that those who watched a lot of such programmes were twice as likely to become pregnant as those who did not.

And it's not just explicit sex scenes that are to blame either. The researchers from RAND Health who carried out the survey found that sex talk was damaging too.

"We found little difference in whether a TV show presents people talking about having sex or portrays them having sex," says Rebecca Collins, the psychologist heading the study. "Both affect adolescents' perceptions of what is normal sexual behaviour, and propels their own sexual behaviour."

The findings come as no surprise to Orla McHugh, a psychotherapist in Dublin who specialises in teenagers.

"The more anyone is exposed to something, the more normal and acceptable it becomes," she says. "Viewing sex on television naturally increases teenagers' curiosity about sex."

And it's something that worries parents.

"Especially in soaps where casual attitudes to sex are often portrayed," says Rita O'Reilly, press officer for Parentline -- a support service based in Dublin.

"The problem," she says, "is that soaps do not portray the morals around sex; they don't depict consequences like sexually transmitted diseases, and there is no evidence of condoms.

"Viewing sex can make teens more casual about sex; it may cause them to have sex earlier, and having more, young girls are more likely to get pregnant."

What can parents do about it?

"You can't, really, stop them from watching soaps when they are beamed into your living room at five, six or seven o'clock," says O'Reilly. "But you can use the programme to open a debate. You can discuss the issues in an age-appropriate way.

"A friend of mine had twin girls of 15 at a time when a girl of 15 became pregnant on Coronation Street. She sat them down and made them watch the whole thing as a deterrent."

Judi Curtin, author of Alice and Megan Forever, which is aimed at pre-teens, finds the issue of sex on TV a difficult one.

"When [her daughters] Ellen (15) and Annie (12) were younger, I was very strict, but now that they are teens, I feel I can't ban soaps. If they are not watching them in my house, they will go and watch them somewhere else.

"I do worry though. For a while the children were into Home and Away. There was a story about a girl moving in with her boyfriend. I presumed she was being portrayed as an older girl, until one day she appeared wearing her school uniform. She was a child, yet the situation was portrayed as if it was entirely natural.

EXPECTATION

"My parental conscience could not let that slip by. I discussed it with my kids. I told them that this should not be an expectation on how they should live their lives.

"How much sank in and whether my words were as powerful as the television image, I can only guess. But you have to do your best.

"We have pin codes on the TV, so that they can't access programmes deemed to be unsuitable. And if my husband and I want to watch something we feel is not suitable for them, we will record it and watch it when they are not around. But you can't ban Home and Away or Friends. And that is a worry."

- Sue Leonard