Pregnant Celebrities (Jamie Lynn Spears) - What Do We Tell Our Kids?

Thursday December 20, 2007

Just a little while ago, I received an email from Anne who suggested:

Perhaps you could advise your readers on the Jamie Spears pregnancy to be a bit more blunt with their daughters. What I told my fourteen-year-old regarding that was now if you have a child that basically it will ruin her high school experience and her life. We have talked about contraception and responsibility but I think that teenagers need to know what they would be getting into if they have a child. We've talked about the physical effects of pregnancy and labor. She is not too keen on sex.

I hope I am approaching the issue correctly.

Actually, Anne is right on target! According to a study just released in the Journal of Adolescent Health (2008, January), “Equipping youth with the necessary skills and knowledge to make responsible decisions about sex may help to reduce the more than 750,000 pregnancies among teens and the approximately 9 million cases of sexually transmitted disease infections among youth aged 15–24 years old and that occur in the United States each year.” In fact, this study represents the most recent, nationally representative information that explores the association between adolescents' receipt of sex education with sexual risk behaviors.

The results show that teenagers who receive formal sex education are more likely to delay having intercourse. So, what should parents take from this? Discuss the Jamie Lynn Spears pregnancy with your teenager. Talk about birth control and how to correctly use it. Unlike many previous studies, this latest one shows that discussing sex with your teenager (especially before their first sexual experience), increases the chances that your teen will practice abstinence, will delay initiation of sexual intercourse, and results in the greater likelihood that the teen will use of contraception during sex.

Specific findings? The researchers found that in teens who received sex education in school: 59% of females and 71% of males were less likely and have sex before age 15. Also, for population groups that are often considered to be disadvantaged (i.e., urban, African American females), sex education proved to be especially beneficial.

Talk to your children and support sex education in school. Teenagers need this information to buffer the actions of unwed celebrities like Jamie Lynn Spears, Jessica Alba, Nicole Richie, and other famous females who they try to emulate and look up to. “Sex education provides youth with the knowledge and skills to make healthy and informed decisions about sex, and this study indicates that sex education is making a difference in the sexual behaviors of American youth.”

_{Source: Mueller T.E., Lorrie E. Gavin, L. E., & Kulkarni. (2008). The association between sex education and youth's engagement in sexual intercourse, age at first intercourse, and birth control use at first sex. Journal of Adolescent Health, 42 (1), 89-96.}

Photo Courtesy of iCelebZ.com