A new study has found 90 per cent of adults are in favour of children receiving sex education in schools on sexual intercourse, contraception, safer sex and homosexuality.
According to the Irish Study of Sexual Health and Relationships, which was carried out for the Department of Health and Children and the Crisis Pregnancy Agency, nine in every ten adults said sex education should be provided at school.
The study, the first of its kind in Ireland, revealed 80 per cent of people believe parents should also broach the subject of sex education with their children in the home.
Some 53 per cent of men and 60 per cent of the respondents said they had received sex education at home or in school. The most common topic of sex education received was basic biological information on sexual intercourse.
Those in the 18-to-24 age group were most likely to have learned about the topic at school, with around 90 per cent reporting they had some sex education. The numbers dropped dramatically to 12 per cent of men and 19 per cent of women in the 55 to 64 age group.
Just over half of individuals who reported receiving sex education said that it was "helpful" or "very helpful" in preparing them for adult relationships.
The survey found that parents talking to their children about sex increased the likelihood that their teenagers will delay their first sexual experience, that they will use contraception when they become sexually active and that they will have greater confidence in negotiating sexual relationships.
Men and women with low levels of education are less likely to have received sex education and are less likely to use contraception. This group is also more more likely to becoming sexually active before 17.
The study also found 52 per cent of men and 42 per cent of women believed emergency contraceptives such as the morning after pill should be available over the counter.
Approximately 12 per cent of women report having vaginal sex before age 17. They are almost 70 per cent more likely to experience a crisis pregnancy and three times more likely to experience abortion.
Men and women who have sex before 17 are three times more likely to contract an sexually transmitted infection.
Only 2.7 per cent of men and 1.2 per cent of women identified themselves as homosexual or bisexual. However, 5.3 per cent of men and 5.8 per cent of women reported some same-sex attraction, and similar numbers reported some same-sexual experiences.
The research found around 15 per cent of men and women overall reported the cost of condoms would discourage their use, particularly among younger people and those with lower levels of education.
Around 13 per cent of women have experienced a crisis pregnancy during their lifetime.
The report found more health promotion strategies were needed and there was a need for a national survey of sexual knowledge among people under the age of 18.
Minister for Health and Children Mary Harney said the study provided valuable information on Irish sexual knowledge, attitudes and behaviours.
"People are beginning sexual relationships at a much earlier age and clearly our society has to be aware of that and prepared for that and in particular sex education is essential both at school level and within the home and I think we need to resource teachers and parents to be able to provide appropriate sex education to young people," Ms Harney said.
"I am particularly concerned that people from a lower socio-economic group, who have a lower standard of education are having sexual experiences under the age of 17. I believe that is a concern for our society."
The Economic and Social Research Institute and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland carried out the fieldwork for the study in 2004. The study surveyed 7,441 adults between the ages of 18 and 64 in 2004.
