Marines lead other services in number of sexual partners, unprotected sex: Report

Marines tend to have more sexual partners and are more likely to engage in unprotected sex than their colleagues in other branches of the military, a new study shows.

The wide-ranging RAND Corporation survey — which also examined alcohol and tobacco use, mental health and a host of other issues — asked service men and women whether they’d had more than one sexual partner over the year’s time that data were gathered. RAND conducted its research in 2015 and 2016.

More than 24 percent of Marines said they’d had more than one sexual partner, compared to 22.1 percent for the Navy, 18.8 percent for the Air Force, 16.6 percent for the Army and 15.5 percent for the Coast Guard. Across the entire military, 19.4 percent said they’d had more than one partner.

Marines also seem more likely to engage in risky sexual behavior, according to the study, with 40.2 percent saying they’d had sex with a new partner without using a condom, compared to 39.2 percent for the Army, 38.3 percent for the Navy, 32 percent for the Coast Guard and 29.1 percent for the Air Force.

Marines also led in a host of other categories.

More than 42 percent of Marines binge drink, the study says, far more than any other service and significantly more than overall military average of 30 percent. More than 20 percent of Marines smoke cigarettes and 23.4 percent use smokeless tobacco — much higher than military averages of 13.9 percent and 12.7 percent, respectively.

“We’re not trying to blame anyone for this, but the Marine Corps does tend to stand out,” Dr. Sarah Meadows, a RAND sociologist, told the San Diego Union-Tribune regarding the results of the study. “Marines tend to be young men. Compared to young men on college campuses, it’s pretty similar.”

But Marines did come out on top in at least one category: drug use.

Just 0.2 percent of Marines said they’d used illicit drugs in the last year, tied with the Coast Guard for the lowest level across military service branches. The Army and Navy led the way at 0.9 percent each, RAND data show, and the total military figure was 0.7 percent.