“First of all, the good news is, is that most sexually active teens are using contraception. However, younger sexually active teens are much less likely than older teens to use contraception consistently; The not-so-good news is that not all of these teens are using them each time.”
Activity:
Roughly 20 percent (depending on the poll) of young teens (13-16 years) are sexually active and that doesn’t include the large number of young teens who don’t think that oral sex is really sex. The bottom line is that more than two-thirds of teens who are sexually active admit that they wish they could go back to innocence again and desperately wish they had waited. Fact: Most sexually active teens say they wish they had waited until they were older before having sex.
Abstinence:
Abstinence avoids a lot of problems-and holds out a marvelous hope for a lasting future. Abstinence-only programs do not meet all of the needs of America’s youth in their quest for the information and skills necessary to make good decisions and stay healthy. Abstinence education programs typically teach school-age children, who may not be prepared to make responsible, healthy decisions about sex, and that they should abstain from sexual activity until marriage. Most Americans support teaching teenagers about both abstinence and contraception.
Health:
Health professionals commonly agree that there is far too little sex education, both at home and at school. The National Survey of Family Growth is conducted periodically by CDC National Center for Health Statistics to collect data on factors which influence the American family including data on marriage, divorce, and cohabitation; contraception; infertility; pregnancy outcomes and births. You can access this information yourself. Critics say teaching about contraception gives a mixed message, yet research shows that teaching about contraception and condoms helps kids make healthier decisions about sex. Young people who are taught about both abstinence and safer, protected sex report making healthier decisions about sex, even avoiding unprotected sex or not having sex at all.
Family:
The American family is eroding, because we don’t spend as much time together any more. Please, try getting together as a family at least for a few minutes everyday. Using your thoughts of course, but a certain limited openness about sex and sexual issues, as well as supportive discussions of family values, can help your teens make better informed decisions about their sexual activity.
In Conclusion: (My Convictions):
Teaching teens about the benefits of healthy relationships in society, along with the benefits of abstaining from sex, drugs, alcohol and violence, should begin in the home! Teaching these skills at home should include at least some of the following: setting healthy personal boundaries, peer-pressure resistance, communication and relationship skills, goal setting and media discernment. It is this combination of knowledge and skills, along with support from parents, teachers, friends and community members that help teens become and/or stay abstinent and reach their full potential to be able to contribute to the communities in which they live, and become, and live as healthy adults.
