Mothers first, then only adults

BECOMING a mother before becoming an adult seems to be a growing trend in South Africa where teenage pregnancy is on the rise.

In a country where the HIV prevalence amongst 15-19-year-old girls is 9 percent, teenagers continue to take the risk of having unprotected sex.

According to national statistics 72 000 schoolgirls cited pregnancy as a reason for not being in school in 2005. Figures from the Society for Family Health (SFH) indicate that 17% of 15 - 24-year-old females are HIV positive. What makes this statistic even more shocking is that only 21% of 15 - 24-year-olds have been tested, which is lower than the national average for testing of 30%.

Read More Here

Leveling with kids about s-e-x

One day, point-blank, Harriet Gourdine-Adams' 8-year-old son, what with his ready access to the pamphlets and brochures in his mother's workaday arsenal, asked her to define "sex." She gave him an age-appropriate answer."I said, 'Oh, it's the special way that mommy and daddy love each other.' And he says, 'Oh, OK.'"

He kept it moving, did not bat an eye, did not miss a beat, said Gourdine-Adams, family planning director for Nassau County's community health centers. He was satisfied with her easy, breezy comeback. And this, she said, came as a relief to her 15-year-old daughter, who was standing in a corner listening and, by the contortions on her face, petrified about what would drop from her pull-no-punches mother's mouth onto a little boy's brain.

Read More Here

What sex week forgot?

On college campuses, to warn students of the dangers of 'friends with benefits' and 'hooking up' is so politically incorrect

With headlines focused on college massacres and presidential nominees, it's natural to have overlooked an event that has become familiar on campuses around the nation: Sex Week. The goals of last month's happening at Northwestern University were to examine misconceptions about sexual health and to speak openly about "taboo" and "hush-hush" topics.

Don't yawn -- to dismiss Sex Week without scrutiny would be a blunder.

Read More Here

Fewer Utah Teens Getting Pregnant

Utah's teen pregnancy rate has fallen more than 3.5 percent in the last two years. In 2003, nearly 40 of every 1,000 girls ages 15-19 became pregnant.

In 2005, the number dropped to 38 per 1,000. In 2005, the Utah Department of Health (UDOH) set an ambitious goal to cut the state's teen pregnancy rate (includes live births, fetal deaths, and abortions) by 20 percent by the year 2015 (baseline year 2003), which would bring the rate to 32 births per 1,000. There is more good news. Teen pregnancy rates have fallen more than 20 percent in Utah and the U.S. over the last decade.

Read More Here

Mothers, daughters talk about sex

As a father, Dr. Dave Solberg concedes that children don't want lectures, so he had a question for girls at a teen pregnancy conference Thursday:

"When you have sex, the question you have to ask yourself is, 'Do I want to be a mother today?'" Solberg said Thursday during a presentation for girls and their mothers.
Dozens of women and girls turned out to hear Solberg and another doctor discuss some of the consequences of sex, including pregnancy and sexually-transmitted infections.
Though some of the teens said they didn't want to hear the facts from their parents, the women at "Just for Us Girls!" said they believe their girls need to get the information in some way.

Read More Here

Welcome and leave your comment now

Sorry that I didn't realise that people cannot leave their comment, I have already change the settings for the blog and you are all welcome to leave your comment and start your debate here.

Teen pregnancy must be a talking point

Last December, frustrated by a teen pregnancy rate that kept rising even as state and national levels were dropping, a group of Washington County officials decided to risk $5,000 in prize money on the idea that teens could persuade their peers to delay or abstain from sex.

On Thursday night, their bet paid off, as teens, parents and some elected officials gathered at the Maryland Theatre to view a short film, some 30-second spots and some print ads. Many different techniques were used, but the theme for all was the same - sex has consequences.

Read More Here