A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found a dramatic increase in the number of sexually active teens who are using the morning-after-pill (MAP) to avoid conception.

The Associated Press (AP) is reporting on the new statistics which show that more than one in five sexually active teen girls have used the morning after pill – a dramatic increase from 10 years ago when it was just one in 12.

The increase is likely due to the fact that teens can now buy emergency contraception without a prescription, making it much easier to acquire.

The fact that more teens are buying the drug now is a sign that "teens, like adults, often are not very good at contraception," said Bill Albert, chief program officer for the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy to the AP. “In the battle between sex and sex with contraception, sex often wins."

The morning-after pill, also known as Plan B, contains a higher dose of the female hormone progestin than is in regular birth control pills and can cut the chances of pregnancy by nearly 90 percent if taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex. It typically costs anywhere from $35 to $50.

Even though the drug was approved for sale over-the-counter, there are serious health risks associated with its use.

According to the Population Research Institute (PRI), the sole active ingredient in Plan B, levonorgestrel, is associated with adverse side effects such as significant weight gain, depression, ovarian cyst enlargement, gallbladder disease, high blood pressure, respiratory disorders, increased risk of ectopic pregnancy and even death.

“In some women, these serious adverse effects of levonorgestrel-type MAP could lead to further health risks for bulimia, anorexia, or clinical depression,” the PRI reports.

“While these risks are multiplied with increased use, the advocates of MAP promote its increased, frequent, and repeated use. The makers of Plan-B, MAP suggest it ‘can be provided as frequently as needed,’ as if it were candy or Tums. The wholesale promotion by the profiteers is undercut by solid evidence, and warnings advising women and physicians to limit usage, or to not use it at all.”

The only good news in the latest CDC report is that sexual activity among teens has remained at about 45 percent for both boys and girls, which reflects a decades-long decrease from 1988 when activity was at 60 percent for boys and 51 percent for girls. Experts believe the fear of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases has played a role in seeing a noticeable drop in teen sexual activity in the last 10 years.

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