Every generation makes its mark in society. Many young adults in ours have come to believe it is okay to hook up with absolutely no emotional attachment.

In the 1960s teenagers began to rebel and started the hookup culture. It has grown so that we have become a generation totally against relationships. We fear them and would rather be alone because we have the mistaken idea, it is so much better to go solo. So instead of making lasting connections we have invested our time in one-night stands.

Our media-saturated society is filled with images of half naked men and women, and sex is literally what sells almost everything in America. Those images have even helped sell us on the idea that hookups are better than commitments.

This is endangering our country by endangering our physical and emotional health. Young adults like to believe they are invincible but that is not the case. Although sexual freedom can be liberating for some, there are risks.

More and more young adults are getting sexually transmitted diseases and experiencing unplanned pregnancies that sometimes end up with abortion. In addition, those who experience these problems often also face emotional struggles such as depression as a result.

Young adults often go to college with the intention of having fun while getting an education. However, many end up getting into the party phase because they no longer have parents telling them to do homework. Instead of being worried about grades, they worry about their social life.

Young adults need to be smart and focus on their future.

In a study of the “Sexual Hook-up Culture” by Justin R. Garcia, which sampled 1,468 college students, of the 429 students who had engaged in oral sex, anal sex or vaginal intercourse in their most recent hookup, only 46.6 percent reported using a condom. Numbers like these show how we are not being smart.

Since the hookup culture promotes more sexual contact, we are putting ourselves at increasing risk of catching STDs. Many students say they are not worried about catching an STD because they feel like it is less likely to happen to them, but according to an article published in USA Today by John Amis, at least one in four teenage girls nationwide has a sexually transmitted disease. That represents more than 3 million of our generation.

So this hook up culture is putting lives in danger. I understand it is not easy to change millions of people’s minds. But we need to take a step back and realize what we have allowed to happen to ourselves. We do not want our children to grow up in this type of a society, so why should we?