Running Head: CHOOSING ABSTINENCE

Choosing Abstinence

Ashley Lake

The University of Texas at El Paso

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Abstract

In this generation, many young teen girls are mothers all across the United States. It has

been a common sight for many years now. Though there has recently been a decline in teen

pregnancy due to new birth control and contraception, it is nevertheless an issue that seems not

to be solved yet. There has not been a most common way of keeping these rates down. Other

countries seem to have their methods yet in the United States it is looked at as unnecessary.

Action must be taken such as raised awareness and programs which support abstinence. The

problem of being sexually active does not stop at pregnancy, it expands to other issues. However,

pregnancy seems to be the largest consequence. There are negative long term affects to teen

pregnancy that determine the outcome of future generations. Many social media sites glamorize

sex too often and it is important to show teens the benefits of turning the other way, and

remaining abstinent, as there are many benefits to that lifestyle.

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Many people see a teenage pregnant girl and think; I wonder what the story is

behind it. Most might say that perhaps she is an irresponsible young lady that did not use

protection. Some might say that this girl was maybe a victim of rape. Whatever the story may be,

here is what is true; the rate of young teenage pregnant girls is high. Rates have been much

higher than it has ever been specifically here in the United States of America until 2015 where

we see a bit of a decrease due to more teens on birth control. The rates also vary in ethnical

groups and different races. Rural areas tend to have high rates of teenage pregnancy. There have

been many questions as to what can be done about this issue however very little action has taken

place. Perhaps to most people it is not an issue they think of very often. However, it is crucial

because teen pregnancy can have a huge effect on the child, mother, and both their futures and

what becomes of them. Abstinence should be taught to kids growing up to avoid pregnancy. It is

also a thought to be considered because being sexually active comes with other problems such

as sexually transmitted infections. Though the chart below shows a decline in teen pregnancy

over the last few years alone, it is important to make sure the rates keep going down. A

decrease in child bearing teens would mean a decrease in the immoral act of abortion and

other such problems.

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The reasoning behind why the teenage pregnancy rates are high is because society

tells young adults that they need to have sex or else they are an outcast or perhaps not normal.

Society glamorizes sex at a young age because they come up with all kind of reasons that it is

healthy for you or that it is fun and satisfying. It is not so satisfying when pregnancy occurs but

that is not what the media will say. Even along with glamorizing sex, teens may not feel like

pregnancy is the end of the world because our government is one to help those who need it.

Teenage girls are easily influenced and give into peer pressure when it comes to

sex. The consequences of their actions do not occur to them at the moment. This is a very good

reason as to why attention needs to be brought to the issue. IF there is not enough precautions

taking place, teen pregnancy will be easy to come by. If the right programs, education and action

take place, teen pregnancy can be avoided. Other countries have lower rates of pregnancy

because of their emphasis on sex education and the importance of abstinence. Some action in the

past has been taken to fund such programs, however, have not been so successful. It has been

shown that teens that have not been offered education on sex, have had no choice but to turn to

other things for information such as magazines. Now a days we see that magazines may no

longer be a strong influence on young adults but other forms of media have taken place such as

social media that provide the same information. Teenage girls, subsequently, began filling the

gaps left by abstinence-only education by turning to other sources of sexual information such as

magazines (Medley-Rath 2007), stating that magazines were a meaningful source of sex

education especially when they did not have a friend or family member they felt they could talk

to (Treise and Gotthoffer 2002; Carpenter 1998). (Wegmann 2013)

In my primary research, I interviewed a few individuals in which I knew from high

school that had children in high school. In meeting with them I asked them many questions about
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their teen pregnancy. Questions such as if they have ever received sex education or if they were

ever taught about the consequences of unprotected sex. I was surprised to learn that they had not

been talked to about sex growing up and they had wished they were educated and warned against

teen pregnancy because they did not think that such a thing could happen to them. They also

shared with me some of the struggles of having a baby at a young age. They did not express great

regret, however wish that they received more caution about pregnancy growing up.

In the United States, there are groups of teens more susceptible to pregnancy. There

are many factors to contribute to that such as; their way of upbringing, where they live and

possibly their ethnic group or race. Our results demonstrate that given their high STI and

pregnancy rates, out-of-school youth are an important group to target, with respect to the

provision of reproductive health services (Shaw) As well as teens that do not attend school,

teens from rural areas are more susceptible to pregnancy that those of urban areas. This is

because they have little or no access to health care or contraception.

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There are some long term affects to not only teenage pregnancy, but also in not

choosing to remain abstinent and wait until marriage for sex. For example, most teen moms drop

out of high school because they cannot handle the work of being a new mother and pursuing an

education, which poses as a long term affect on how she will provide for her baby and what kind

of example she is showing to an influential child. Children whose parents have dropped out of

school are likely to do the same. As shown in the picture below, graduation rates are in fact

affected by young mothers.

While Teen Pregnancy Programs seem to be effective in other countries, it is

difficult for schools in the US to all agree that they are necessary. Not all public schools include

this in the curriculum because of conflict. Though new contraception medications have come out

over the last couple of years, some may believe that the pregnancy issue is solved and further

measure is not necessary. However, it is always necessary to do what is morally correct and

avoid actions in which there may be consequences. Remaining abstinent avoids consequences
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such as pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections, future family conflict and separation, and

even extreme measures such as abortion. Now many people will argue that abstinence and

premarital sex is dead, however it is most beneficial to a person and their well being. It is best

not to bring a baby into the world in which is not ready for it yet.
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References

Shaw, S. Y., Metge, C., Taylor, C., Chartier, M., Charette, C., Lix, L., & Martens, P.J. (2016)

Teen clinics: missing the mark? Comparing pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections

rates among enrolled and non-enrolled adolescents. International Journal for Equity In

Health, 161-10. doi:10.1186/s12939-016-0386-9

Santhanam, L. (2016, November 16). Why is the teen birth rate so much higher in rural areas?

Retrieved October 19, 2017, from https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/teen-birth-rate-higher-

rural-areas

Wegmann, J. (2013). It must be true- I read it in Seventeen magazine: US popular culture and sexual

messages in an era of abstinence-only education. Sex Education, 13(5), 494-508.

doi:10.1080/14681811.2013.765358

News, C. (2013, March 04). New Yorks teen pregnancy PSAs. Retrieved October 20. 2017,

from https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/new-yorks-teen-pregnancy-psas/