Being Pregnant
UK Sees Historic Low in Teen Pregnancy Rates
Good news coming out of the United Kingdom regarding their Teen Pregnancy rates. It has finally hit a historic low for the first time in 30 years! Which makes me wonder how the United States can follow suit and work to lower the teen pregnancy rates right here in our own country.
When it comes to comparing developed nations around the world, The US, and the UK are pretty similar when it comes to the way we live.
While the number of teen pregnancies slightly fell in 2009 for the first time since 1997 to 39.1% per 1,000 live births. But when we look at this number we see that we have a significant difference from the UK. Their rate of teen births? 3.83% per the latest releases out of the country.
Lawmakers in the country have cited sexual health, and sexual relation education programs for the decrease in the number. While in the United States, we are still fighting to get more funding for the same programs that were cut during the years of the Bush Administration, and replaced with Abstinence Only education programs, which repeatedly have been proven to fail at preventing teen pregnancy, and STD transmission.
It is certainly a country we can take pointers from to help lower the rate of teen births, and pregnancies in our own country to get the growing problem under control.
But… what will it take? With shows like 16 and Pregnant, Teen Mom, and Skins… what message are we sending the teenagers who are watching most of these programs?
What do you think we could do to help lower the Teen Pregnancy rates in the United States?
photo: flickr.com/Polina Sergeeva
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0 Comments
Rae commented on Feb 23 11 at 12:10 pmSo lets take it into our own hands and TEACH our children about sex, STDs, what happens to your body with pregnancy, what happens to your LIFE with pregnancy.
Believe me, my daughter will not be lied to (at least by her parents), because we want her to know. Her body is her own, and she NEEDS to know this stuff in order to make an INFORMED decision.
I just want to know, what the hell is so shameful about sex? Its a normal bodily function, is it not? I mean, I don’t want to SEE someone else doing it on the street, please try to do it where you are unseen…mainly because its a very vulnerable situation, and intimate, private, not because it is horrid and disgusting. For the most part, every baby is caused by sex, Every STD is passed on by sex. Let kids LEARN about one of hte most important parts of their life BEFORE they actually jump into the experience with no working knowledge.
KC commented on Feb 23 11 at 12:42 pmYour rates are incorrect. Its read as 39.1 per 1000 live births or 3.91 percent. Meaning of 1000 live births in the country, 39.1 were to teenage mothers. That is similar to the UK (although still higher).
DeepSouthDoula commented on Feb 23 11 at 2:49 pmI will never understand why we can educate children about Alcohol, Drug, and Smoking prevention in school but not Reproductive Education. Only a small percentage of children will drink, smoke or do drugs in their lifetimes but pretty much ALL of them will have sex at some point. It makes no sense.
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