New federal data analyzed this week shows a significant drop in the share of younger U.S. teenagers identifying as lesbian, gay, or bisexual. The decline stands out most among ninth-grade girls, according to psychologist Jean Twenge's review of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 2025 Youth Risk Behavior Survey.

Twenge reported that LGB identification among ninth graders fell from 17 percent in 2023 to 11 percent in 2025. The drop was driven almost entirely by girls. Among ninth-grade girls, the rate declined from 27 percent in 2023 to 22 percent in 2025, with bisexual identification halving from 26 percent in 2021 to 13 percent in 2025. Ninth-grade boys saw a smaller shift, from 9 percent to 7 percent.

Older students showed more modest changes. Twelfth graders declined from 18 percent to 16 percent over the same period, while eleventh graders fell from around 18 percent to 15 percent. The Washington Post highlighted the trend with the phrase "free fall," prompting widespread discussion online.

The survey also captured a parallel decline in reported same-sex sexual behavior among younger female students who are sexually active. Twenge noted the pattern reverses earlier rapid increases that had been concentrated among adolescent girls.

Researchers cautioned that the reasons remain unclear and that longer-term data will be needed to determine whether the shift represents a lasting change or a temporary fluctuation. The CDC data covers a nationally representative sample of public and private high school students in grades 9 through 12.

The findings follow similar reports of stabilizing or declining non-heterosexual identification in some young adult surveys from earlier in 2025 and 2026. Conservative commentators have pointed to the numbers as evidence that prior spikes reflected temporary social influences rather than fixed traits.