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Arbo
09-11-2013, 07:59 PM
http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2013/09/09/teen_birth_rate_hits_all_time_low_the_reason_is_co ntraception_not_abstinence.html



With the ever-present buzz of cultural panic about young people, especially young women, having sex, you'd be forgiven for thinking we're living in the midst of some kind of sexual health pandemic, with our high schools and even junior high schools overflowing with the swollen bellies of pregnant teenagers. The reality, according to a Centers for Disease Control report released Friday, is that the teen birth rate has plunged downward yet again, falling 6 percent between 2011 and 2012. It has never been lower, as least not in the 73 years the government has been tracking it.

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So what's changed? It certainly wasn't that teenagers en masse decided to stop having sex.Teen sex rates have stayed about the same since 2002 (http://www.nbcnews.com/health/teen-birth-rate-hits-historic-low-officials-say-8C11086339). Abortions for teenagers haven't gone up, either. As much as the Sandra Fluke haters will cringe to hear it, the difference is contraception use. Speaking to NBC News, Dr. John Santelli, a professor of population and family health at Columbia University, attributed the change to a greater emphasis on getting effective contraception to teens, especially long-acting methods like the IUD. I'd add that organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics (http://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/pages/AAP-Recommends-Emergency-Contraception-Be-Available-to-Teens.aspx?nfstatus=401&nftoken=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000&nfstatusdescription=ERROR%3a+No+local+token) and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (http://www.acog.org/About_ACOG/ACOG_Departments/Adolescent_Health_Care/History_of_Policy_and_Activities_of_the_American_C ollege_of_Obstetricians_and_Gynecologists_in_Adole scent_Health_and_Pregnancy) have also been more aggressive lately in promoting teen sexual health, perhaps making it easier for families to get their kids into the contraception plans they need.

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Indeed, it's important not to overlook the role that sex education plays in all this. As Tara Culp-Ressler at ThinkProgress points out (http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/09/06/2581241/teen-birth-rate-record/), teen birth rates vary wildly by state, with conservative states having a higher rate (http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/map_of_the_week/2012/09/teen_births_map_shows_conservative_states_have_mos t_teen_moms_.html). The state of California is perhaps the most stunning example of how swiftly things can change, going from more than 70 births per 1,000 girls to 28 since 1991, in no small part because of aggressive sex education (http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/07/19/2325441/california-teen-birth-rate-plummet/) and family planning programs. Teens simply do better if they're given the tools to stay safe when they do have sex and don't do as well with the "just say no" message.


Good news overall, the smaller the amount of uneducated, unprepared kids there are having kids the better. And yes, teaching them to be safe is the best be, as the data shows. Because in general, they are gonna do it anyway.

cadet
09-11-2013, 08:02 PM
I hear teen pregnancy lowers dramatically at the age of 20.

Trinity
09-11-2013, 08:16 PM
http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2013/09/09/teen_birth_rate_hits_all_time_low_the_reason_is_co ntraception_not_abstinence.html



Good news overall, the smaller the amount of uneducated, unprepared kids there are having kids the better. And yes, teaching them to be safe is the best be, as the data shows. Because in general, they are gonna do it anyway.

Please no more uneducated kids not in today's world with the knowledge we have that is unacceptable....

and yes they are......refer back to my post yesterday....even though he uses protection he still freaked out....;)

Trinity
09-11-2013, 08:18 PM
I hear teen pregnancy lowers dramatically at the age of 20.



hmmm that could be debated.... I hear the 30's are the new 20's, so then that would make the 20's the new teens....that's kind of scary.:eek:

Arbo
09-11-2013, 08:31 PM
Please no more uneducated kids not in today's world with the knowledge we have that is unacceptable....

and yes they are......refer back to my post yesterday....even though he uses protection he still freaked out....;)

Agree 100%. I hope when mine hit that age, and they are about there, what we put in their heads sticks as it appears to with yours. Guess you never know for sure until it happens, unfortunately.