British campaigners urged teenagers not to have sex before marriage, warning that lust is “ugly and destructive”.

A leaflet published by the Family Education Trust says that teenagers need to know the difference between true love and “physical attraction, infatuation or lust”.

Today’s culture leads people to “expect and demand instant gratification”, the leaflet claims.

It says: “We have become impatient, and we suffer the consequences in terms of personal debt, emotional trauma, sexually transmitted infections and family breakdown.”

The pamphlet, which the Trust says is being mailed to secondary schools across the UK, urges teenagers not to be taken in by magazines, music and TV soaps presenting “love based on physical attraction”.

Young people should not be preoccupied with appearance, should develop qualities such as faithfulness and patience and ask themselves how potential partners treat their parents.