As per a new research, which has been taken out by a group of researchers from the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, it has been revealed that sexting, a practice of sending explicit messages, has been found to be having a negative effect on teenagers.

Moreover, it has been found that one in seven teenagers have sent a sexually-explicit message pr photo from their phones. Lead researcher of the study Eric Rice, who is also a social network researcher in the university, was of the view that teenagers, who are into the practice of sexting, are found to be seven times more sexually active than their peers, who are not into such practice.

"What we really wanted to know is, is there a link between sexting and taking risks with your body? And the answer is a pretty resounding ‘yes'", said Rice.

The study findings have been published in the journal Pediatrics, and its findings are based on the assessments of 1,839 students, who have been studying in los-Angeles based high schools.

In addition, it has been found that girls, who are in to the habit of sending their naked photos, are into the practice of getting indulged in racy sex behavior.