Abstinence-only pros and cons

Mom and sex health expert Amy Lang explains why the "abstinence only" method not be the best way to teach children and adolescents about sexual activity and practicing safe sex.
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Abstinence-only pros and cons

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I think teaching abstinence-only is almost entirely a con. Kids say that what they want is a strong message about waiting, waiting to have sex, they're game with waiting to have sex. But they also want information about birth control and sexually transmitted infections because they need to be able to protect themselves. It's very clear from our current state of teen sexual health that abstinence-only education is not effective. We have the highest teen pregnancy rate in the industrialized world and have for years. We also have a correspondingly high rate of sexually transmitted infections amongst teenage girls. One in four teen girls in the Untied States has a sexually transmitted infection. So when we only teach abstinence, we're doing our kids a disservice. What works for kids and what they want is a strong message of abstinence or postponement coupled with information about birth control and how to protect themselves from STDs.

Mom and sex health expert Amy Lang explains why the "abstinence only" method not be the best way to teach children and adolescents about sexual activity and practicing safe sex.

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Amy Lang, MA

Sex Education Expert

Despite her 16 years of experience as a sexual health educator, Amy Lang found herself completely tongue-tied when her four year old son had "something very important" to tell her about his penis. Shocked by her discomfort, she realized if she was struggling, other parents must be too. Amy also holds an MA in Applied Behavioral Science and her focus was in adult education and group facilitation. She decided to combine her love of sex talking and her love of working with adults and started Birds + Bees + Kids in 2006.

Amy is a three time Mom’s Choice Award winner for her book, Birds + Bees + YOUR Kids - A Guide To Sharing Your Beliefs About Sexuality, Love and Relationships and DVD, Birds + Bees + Kids - The Basics. She is also the author of the book, Say What?! The Birds + Bees for Progressive Parents - What to Say and How to Say It!

She has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Seattle Magazine, Parent Map magazine and has contributed to a gazillion other publications. Sex advice guru Dan Savage says “Amy is a parent’s best friend-with-benefits when it comes to talking to kids about sex.” 

Though Birds + Bees + Kids, Amy helps parents of all beliefs have easy, open and effective conversations about sexuality, love and relationships with their kids. She offers talks, workshops, one-on-one consultations and live webcasts. Amy is also the co-founder of MamaCON - Inspiration and Tools for Modern Moms, a conference supporting the hard work of moms everywhere.

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