Pregnancy, STDs on the Rise Again Among U.S. Teens

[AlphaCentauri]

Source: ABC

according to a new U.S. government study.

About one-third of adolescents hadn't received instruction on methods of birth control before age 18.

In 2004, there were about 745,000 pregnancies among females younger than age 20. This included an estimated 16,000 pregnancies among girls aged 10 to 14.

Syphilis cases among young people aged 15 to 24 have increased in both males and females in recent years.

In 2006, about one million young people aged 10 to 24 were reported to have chlamydia, gonorrhea or syphilis.

Nearly one-quarter of females aged 15 to 19, and 45 percent of females aged 20 to 24 had a human papillomavirus (HPV) infection during 2003-2004.

From 1997 to 2006, rates of AIDS cases among males aged 15 to 24 increased.

In 2006, the majority of new diagnoses of HIV infection among young people occurred among males and those aged 20 to 24.

From 2004 to 2006, about 100,000 females aged 10 to 24 visited a hospital emergency department for nonfatal sexual assault, including 30,000 females aged 10 to 14.




Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Healthday/story?id=8105118&page=1

[Deja Q]

1. Well, abstinence and relationships are unrealistic... right Docker or whatever your name is?

Guess? :evilgrin:

:shrug:

[mbperrin]

2. No worries! The Texas high school diploma program no longer requires

any health instruction, including sex or reproduction!

This from the young punk lawyer appointed by Governor Goodhair, effective immediately. Oh, and no more computer technology classes, either!

Yippee! Our new official motto: "Back to the 14th century and quick!"

So these STD and other numbers should improve quickly with millions of Texas schoolkids now officially blinded to facts!

Wahoo!

[sallylou666]

20. TX course was a joke anyway

My teenager went through the previously required health course in Texas, which was a joke. Apparently, the curriculum didn't even include STIs. I thought that it was a tradition to scare the kids with STDIs? At least that was my experience back in the Dark Ages.

[mbperrin]

25. Ours out here was pretty good, with STDs, AIDS prevention, biology of the

body, psychology of the single parent, budget exercises, computer baby to carry for a week 24 hours a day, referrals to the health department and Planned Parenthood.

Usual deal with secondary education; once the door is closed, teachers are often on their own; that can be good or bad.

But now, with no health course even being offered, that's gone.

And who needs computer tech courses, either?

[Robb]

3. It's because the libruls are now in charge.

...Except for the stats stop in 2006. :D

Robb's new theory: war causes pregnancies and STDs to rise.

[no_hypocrisy]

4. Several reasons why

* Lack of sufficient programs concerning birth control, protection again sexually transmitted diseases, fertility cycles

* Lack of access to health clinics that provide medical services such as examinations, abortion, birth control, and medical care

* Draconian statutes such as parental notification which discourages the teens from seeking abortions even if it's accessible

[Odin2005]

5. Thanks, Bush.

Telling horny teens not to have sex and expecting them to listen because "Jebus said so" is an exercise in futility.

[Turbineguy]

6. That does it!

I'm voting for republicans! 45 percent infection rates aren't nearly high enough.

And look at those dates! Obama is obviously responsible for this.

[mistertrickster]

7. Knowledge is better than ignorance?! Wow. You're attacking everything that

RepubliCONs hold dear when you talk like that.

[left coaster]

8. I'm always shocked at the sheer numbers..

"From 2004 to 2006, about 100,000 females aged 10 to 24 visited a hospital emergency department for nonfatal sexual assault, including 30,000 females aged 10 to 14."

A National Crime Victimization survey in 2008, showed a 42% increase in reported domestic violence and a 25% increase in the reported incidence of rape and sexual assault.


I know we all are quick to note the teen sex/STD and pregnancy aspect of an article like this.. but, certainly more alarming, at least to me, as a woman, is the fact that sexual violence and assault of this scope, perpetrated on any other specific group of people, would be met with public outrage.. not silence.

[LiberalLovinLug]

9. Chalk another "accomplishment" up for Dubya

WORST PRESIDENT EVER

[WriteDown]

10. More to this study than meets the eye

Definite differences in demographics. People forget that its a relatively recent phenomenom where teen pregnancies are looked down upon. In a lot of Hispanic cultures its not only accepted its celebrated.


"The study also identified a number of racial/ethnic disparities in the sexual and reproductive health of young Americans. For example, Hispanic teens aged 15 to 19 are much more likely to become pregnant (132.8 births per 1,000 females) than non-Hispanic blacks (128 per 1,000) and non-Hispanic whites (45.2 per 1,000). The study also found that non-Hispanic black youth in all age groups have the highest rates of new HIV and AIDS diagnoses."

[Bette Noir]

16. Excuse me? Practicing Latina here.

Teen pregnancy is only celebrated when it follows a teen marriage. I wasn't allowed to *hold hands* until after the wedding.

Where some people get their ideas escapes me entirely.

[WriteDown]

17. I live in a Hispanic neighborhood...

If you don't speak Spanish then you can't communicate with your neighbors here. Girls who are 14 look about 20. My neighbor just had a beautiful granddaughter and had a huge celebration before the baby was born. He said that since his mother was 16 when he was born in Mexico he didn't see much problem with it. The daughter, the father and the new baby will all be staying with the grandparents who just built a new extension on the house. I'm not saying this is the only reason, but if I had gotten a girl pregnant at 15, lets say that my parents reaction would have been FAR different.

[Yupster]

21. Hispanic area here too

I think the marriage expectation is gone around here.

Hispanic teens in our local schools are getting pregnant in huge percentages around here (Texas), and they aren't getting married before the births like they did mostly just ten years ago. There's a major change going on in the Hispanic community around here as to young marriages and having kids when young.

[DollyM]

11. around here I think it is more a desire to have a baby . . .

Our teen birth rate is very high in this area but it is so accepted, almost common place, that there doesn't seem to be much incentive to not become pregnant. Out of all of my son's friends who were 17 to 20 mostly, only him and a couple of others had not fathered a child and even the two I mentioned were sexually active. I remember growing up that I had my goals so clearly in mind that I didn't want to do ANYTHING that would mess up my future. These kids seem to feel that having a baby at a young age is their future. So I think that perhaps statistics like this that are used to draw generalizations would be better if they determined regionally what the problem is. It is not lack of information here, it is the acceptance of teen pregnancy as well as the many "perks" a pregnant or parenting teen can receive for doing so.

[WriteDown]

12. My cousin who works as a counselor on Long Island....

Says that she has many 13-16 year olds who come in and say that A) condoms are not for real men and B) being a real man involves having multiple children by multiple women. Makes me want to just slap my hand to my forehead.


edited for spelling.

[Odin2005]

26. WHAAA... What a bunch of morons! With misogyny to boot!

Good god, If I would of said any of that misogynistic, moronic crap my parents would have given me a slap across the face.

[eagertolearn]

13. Part of sex education is talking about the reasons you shouldn't have baby's at a young age.

There's so much more than telling them not to have sex and it has to be on going discussion from grammer school age. Kind of like talking about college being the next grade after high school. We live in a small town where the pregnancy rate is high but my girls do not want to get pregnant because they have so many goals to accomplish. The people who don't want sex education in the schools either keep tight control of their kids through their church activities (and get them married very fast) or they think because they are dropping their kids off at youth group every week that they won't have sex before marriage (these are the ones usually getting pregnant). Then there is those of us who do educate our kids (and any other kids that happen to be around) and if they have sex it is usually with protection. Then there's the poor kids who don't have church or a family who is educating them and many of these become pregnant becasue of the lack of education. I don't care what anyone says, educating them about protecting themselves has to be started at a young age and research has shown that this works in preventing pregnancies and STD's. We need to teach our the girls that there is so much more to desire than having a baby at 14. Give them better idea's and confidence to strive for independence and what that can do for you instead of dependence on society becasue you need to care for a baby.

[DollyM]

27. I think it is especially difficult for kids now to have hope . . .

When I was growing up I knew I had college and career goals ahead of me and that was a reason to be careful what I did. I didn't party in high school and glad I didn't. Teens now seem to have no hope for the future, everything is right now or nothing with them. Frankly, with the economy it is hard to be encouraging. Many of them will not be able to afford college, and even if they go, will there be a job out there for them when they finish. So having a baby seems to be a "cheap" experience for them that will bring them all the attention they could ever want. And like I said, around here, if you are a preganant or parenting teen, there are all kinds of "freebie" type programs you can get into with free stuff for the baby as well as things like make-over/spa days for the teen moms. I know we are trying to be supportive of teen moms but it is almost counterproductive in that the kids who are trying to be focused on the future and work hard, are being denied the same attention.

[tanyev]

22. I saw something horrifying here in a news story about a Dallas alternative school for teen mothers.

They were interviewing one of the girls who already had two children. She got pregnant the first time when she was 14. It was the second time she had sex. When she didn't get pregnant the first time she had sex, she assumed she was infertile and would not be able to ever get pregnant. :(

[Tikki]

14. Love, love this last episode of "Royal Pains"...the seventeen year old virgins decided..

to get birth control so if they decided to have sex...which looks likely..
they will be protected. And at this time they are a monogamous young couple who have
a grand dialog going on with their local physician...

If only this could be in reality...Well at least it shows smart, thoughtful decisions.


Tikki

[nightrain]

15. huh?!? you mean abstinence education didn't work??

[ananda]

18. Thank you crazed idiotic rightwingers and fundies.

Fuck you very much.

[47of74]

19. Insert Bristol Palin joke here.

[Grinchie]

23. Well, when the sexual function is equated with pornography

it sort of makes being informed a little difficult. It is this disconnect with the most basic function of life that drive mankind into his own, suxually repressed, disease inducing prosin of guilt, psychosis, and pathology.

It worked great for the fascists in Nazi Germany, it's working great here for the Fascists too.

The overall trauma of seeing a bare breast! OMG, 225,000 fine for you!

It's no different than any other type of prohibition. The fact that it creates a false shortage will drive higher prices and demand, while the war on sexuality drives more disease and psychosis.

[Brooklyns_Finest]

24. No jobs

I think teen pregnancies are up because a lot of kids have nothing to do but have sex. I think I read somewhere that teen unemployment is at its highest rates in years. I wish someone would do a study on teen pregnancy vs teen employment. Do pregnancies go up when employment goes down?

[Blue_Tires]

28. in way too many communities, its like a rite of passage for teens

and there is no stigma associated anymore with the 17-year-old mom with two kids from two different loser fathers...likewise there is no stigma or societal pressure on the 19-year-old father with multiple kids spread out in the neighborhood who he never sees or tries to give support to... until they learn responsibility and the consequences of their actions, this will only get worse...

[DollyM]

29. exactly!

It is more than giving information about preventing pregnancies. They have to be able to see into the future and how their lives would be different if they put off having children until they are financially and emotionally stable. Somewhat once said "to a teenager, the future is Saturday night" It is all about trying to get them to understand that they have a future and and every action they take now could impact that future for the better or worse.

[Blue_Tires]

31. and as an aside...

I have an dropout in-law who is a soon-to-be single mother (she's not a teen, but she is a still-young 22)...The family was happy for her and expecting her and the longtime live-in boyfriend to get married and they surprised everyone by breaking up -- Why? Evidently he is an irresponsible lout and the relationship has been in a long death spiral for the past year...Of course, no one in our family dares ask why she wanted to conceive and bear the child of someone she can't stand, so we all hold our tongues...

[Dappleganger]

34. Education is the key to diminish this.

Social stigmas are really no good because they have more to do with peer pressure than an inward desire by an intelligent, aspiring teenager that having children at such a young age will impede his/her ability to finish school, go on to college then pursue a meaningful career. We need to stop relying on the old ways of thinking our kids won't do certain things because 'it's just not acceptable' and push education as being the key to giving them purpose and a desire to do better because they CAN.

[AlbertCat]

30. Well, Duh! Gotta have that baby while MeeMaw"s still alive to take care of it!

Besides....there's nothing to DO around here! Let's have sex.

[Norrin Radd]

32. We need a Johnny/Janey Applenoseed, journeying throughout the land

distributing condoms, information, and rational advice.

[Korsa]

33. Telling your kids not to means they automatically listen?

I really don't understand why anybody ever thought that abstinence education was a good idea. Yes, it would be preferable that minors did not have sex. But, just because it would be nice does not mean that we should bury our heads in the sand, tell them no, and then expect them to listen.

I don't know about anyone else, but even among the well-behaved kids, I have never known too many to just blindly listen to EVERYTHING their parents said as if it was a message sent from God. I knew plenty of well-behaved kids who listened to the large majority of what their parents said. But, there were times when they just went ahead and did what they wanted to do anyway.

Who in their right mind really thinks that JUST because you tell a pre-teen or a teenage "no, you can't do that!" or "you'd better not!!" that they will automatically listen? Especially, if its something that they REALLY want to do?

It's going to happen that they defy their parents and do it anyway, eventually. Maybe not with everything, but with some things, and sex seems to be one of the big things they don't want to listen about.

That means that, yes, abstinence rather an impractical and ridiculous notion to ONLY teach kids. There isn't any reason they can't be taught that they are not supposed to have sex so young, but because kids have their own minds they also need to be taught WHY, and they also need to be taught that if they INSIST upon doing it, that here is the information they need to keep themselves, and their partners, safe and baby-free.

Because, teen sex usually happens without parental supervision. At least, I didn't know any teenagers that were sexually active who did it with mama in the background telling them how to do it.

At some point, kids are just gonna do what they're gonna do. They're kinda like people that way...

Maybe Bush thought that while abstinence education alone does not work if it comes from the school or from the parents, that it would definitely work if the president told them not to have sex?

He seemed to think a lot of things would work so long as it was the president doing them. Why not teenagers listening only to the president? Hmm...How well behaved were his daughters when it came to listening to him while growing up and after they'd reached 18?

Wow, sorry for such a long rant! That was a doozy!

[joeglow3]

35. It is sad that schools even need to address this

I obviously support education in schools. However, to me, the greater concern is that so many parents care so little about their kids that they don't educate them themselves.