Teen Pregnancy Facts

According to the 2007 Minnesota Student Survey, 21% of 9th grade boys and 16% of 9th grade girls claimed to have had sexual intercourse at least one time.  In 12th grade, the percentages jump to 49% for males and females!  Less than one-quarter of these students say that sex education in schools has convinced them of the advantages of waiting and less than 40% claim that parents influence their choice to wait.  Here’s the alarming part- 36% of these students having sexual intercourse shared that they never, rarely or sometime use a condom.  With the growing number of students coming in contact with communicable diseases, this statistic is frightening!

What Parents Can Do About Teen Pregnancy

• Get involved!  Almost 50% of all teens claim that their parents are the primary influencer regarding their views on sex.  Talking to your child about sex does not guarantee that your child will not be sexually active or come in contact with a communicable disease. However, studies seem to indicate that parents who hold conversations about sexuality with their teens and share parental values that the teen has a better chance of following those values.  Stay close to you teen and TALK!

• Listen! Listen! Listen to your teen!  Part of getting and staying involved with your teen is listening.  After you make the comment and ask the question:

“As your parent, I love you and I want to be there for you- Where are you at with your thoughts about sex?”

Listen…share your love, concerns and then listen some more.

• Use available resources.  Some current movies (Juno, Waitress or Knocked Up) open the door for discussion.  Depending on your religion, many church libraries have movies that will promote discussions.

TO DO OR SAY NOTHING OFTEN PROMOTES SOMETHING!
AS UNCOMFORTABLE AS YOU MAY BE, HOLD THE CONVERSATION.

Say: “Let’s sit down and talk about sex.”  This conversation needs to take place with both boys and girls during or by the end of middle school.