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Government Support for Abstinence‐Only‐Until‐Marriage Education
Author(s) -
Duffy K,
Lynch DA,
Santinelli J
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
clinical pharmacology and therapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.941
H-Index - 188
eISSN - 1532-6535
pISSN - 0009-9236
DOI - 10.1038/clpt.2008.188
Subject(s) - abstinence , government (linguistics) , sexual abstinence , reproductive health , sex education , psychology , medicine , clinical pharmacology , family planning , developmental psychology , family medicine , population , psychiatry , environmental health , research methodology , pharmacology , linguistics , philosophy
Sexual development is a normal part of adolescence; however, teenage sexual behavior increases the likelihood of unintended pregnancy and STDs. In recent years, there have been highly politicized discussions on how best to prevent negative reproductive health outcomes in adolescents. For the past 12 years, the federal government has endorsed abstinence‐only‐until‐marriage (AOUM) as its primary approach to sex education. Federally funded AOUM programs must promote abstinence from sexual activity and limit discussion of condoms and contraception (except with regard to failure rates). Although monetary support for these programs has increased substantially in the past decade, no research has shown that they are effective at preventing teen pregnancies and STDs. Furthermore, recent analyses reveal that many of these programs contain misleading and medically inaccurate information. As a result, most youth‐centered medical organizations support comprehensive sex education that includes developmentally appropriate information on condoms and contraception. Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (2008); 84 , 6, 746–748 doi: 10.1038/clpt.2008.188