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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThanks To Better Sex Ed, California’s Teen Birth Rate Has Plummeted By 60 Percent
Californias teen birth rate has plummeted to the lowest level that its been in the past 20 years, according to new data from the states health department. The states rate now stands at 28 births for every 1,000 teenage girls a 60 percent drop since 1991, when the rate peaked at 70.9 births for every 1,000 girls.
Public health experts directly attribute this success to state laws that require Californias public schools to offer comprehensive sex ed classes with scientifically accurate information about birth control. State officials also credited family planning programs that provide community-based resources to teens. We do believe that our programs are behind these numbers, Karen Ramstrom, the chief of the program standards branch at the California Department of Public Healths maternal child and adolescent health division, told the Los Angeles Times.
Thats in line with national trends. As a whole, the United States teen pregnancy rate has been plummeting to record lows, largely because teens are gaining better access to contraceptive methods and opting to use birth control as soon as they become sexually active. And research suggests that community-based youth programs are one of the most effective strategies of instilling teens with healthy attitudes and safe approaches toward sexuality.
But progress in this area isnt uniform across every area of the country. While states like California are making huge gains, the teen pregnancy rate remains stubbornly high in the South. Adolescents there tend to receive ineffective abstinence education, and theyre more likely to lack access to birth control resources.
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/07/19/2325441/california-teen-birth-rate-plummet/?mobile=nc
RobertEarl
(13,685 posts)"Don't do it"
But it feels so good.
"Don't do it"
And it's free!
"Don't do it"
I'm not scairt, what's the worst that can happen?
"Don't do it"
onehandle
(51,122 posts)Right?