Abstinence Only Fails

A friend of mine who works for Planned Parenthood in Michigan wrote this piece. I thought it was worth putting on the web site.A kid can turn down sex 99% of the time and if "Abstinence Only" was the only Sex Education they received, they flunk the course if they blow it that other 1% of the time. We have talked a lot about reducing abortion on this site, good Sex Education is a healthy start.

Here is the article:

Just last week, the CDC issued a report showing that for the first time in
14 years the teen birth rate in the US has increased, meaning that next year
we can expect over 750,000 teens to become pregnant.

Why, with all of our resources, do we continue to have the distinction of
having the highest teen birth rate of any industrialized nation? The reason
is simple; In the last decade, more than $1 billion has been wasted on
dangerous abstinence-only programs that deny teenagers pregnancy-preventing
and life-saving information. These abstinence-only programs have been
scientifically shown to have no positive impact on risky sexual behavior at all.

Also important to note is that parents know this and want things to change. A report that came out this summer from Hart Research Associates found that 76% of voters want to see US public schools teaching comprehensive sexual
education- that's 76% of all types of voters, including Democrats,Republicans, Independents, Catholics and Christian evangelicals. We all know its time to put that money thats been going to failed abstinence only education toward real solutions that will help prevent unintended pregnancyand sexually transmitted infections among teenagers. This real solution is
medically accurate, age-appropriate, comprehensive sexual education, in which teenagers learn to protect themselves against STIs, like HIV, and unintended pregnancy.

We need to genuinely focus on reducing teen births for the sake of young mothers and their-children-otherwise consequences for them are grim. A teen who gives birth is less likely to finish high school, and if she is also unmarried, her child has more than a 60 percent chance of growing up in poverty. Reducing the incidence of unplanned pregnancies for teens will help
them continue their education, helps create a healthier and more productive work force, and reduces public expenditures for maternal health problems and family subsidies. With the Michigan economy in the shape its in these days, its important to remember that every dollar spent on family planning
saves three dollars down the line. Not to mention that every teen that is taught how to prevent unintended pregnancy and the transmission of STIs is given greater opportunity to fulfill their potential.

As the recent CDC report makes so clear, the flawed policies of the Bush
Administration in regards to sexual education are catching up to
us. Medically accurate, age-appropriate comprehensive sex education is the
first step in reducing teen pregnancy and saving ourselves a lot of money.