Boarding Schools for Girls

Using computer counseling to help teenage girls prevent pregnancy may be more cost-effective than other interventions, according to a new study from the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

• Researchers studied 235 pregnant teenagers under 18 years old.
• Some received the usual care, and others received computer-assisted counseling in which teenagers use customized software to assess their health risks, behaviors, and other factors.
• The idea was to help them prevent further pregnancies.

The computer-assisted counseling was much less expensive than other interventions, and its results compared favorably with other programs. This study appeared in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine.

Labels: pregnancy, prevention

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Teen pregnancy is on the rise again this year, and many girls admit to getting pregnant so they can "have someone to love." But parenting isnt all cuddles and warm fuzzies. A unique parenting class aims to get that point across.

"Since last Thursday& a Vidalia High School [MS] sophomore has been caring for a mechanical baby that needs all the tender, loving care a newborn baby needs. She fed, soothed, cleaned and changed the diaper of her lifelike doll equipped with sensors that recorded her every move 24 hours a day. Her parenting class teacher will receive a report from the electronic doll that will be used to determine [the students] final grade." [Source: The Natchez (Missouri) Democrat]

The student admitted to the newspaper that she has been spending a lot less time with her friends, and that caring for the baby is harder than she expected.

"I'm not having kids anytime soon," she said.

Labels: pregnancy, mothers, teenagers

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The United States has the highest teen pregnancy rate of any developed country. But a recently completed two-year study indicates that abstinence-only programs may help reverse that trend.

A Feb. 10 MercuryNews.com article by correspondent Tom McMahon provided the following information about the study, which was led by John B. Jemmott III, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania:

• Students were assigned to attend one of five classes.
  
• With 662 urban students between the ages of 11 and 13 participating, researchers found that only 33.5 percent of the students who went through classes that focused on abstinence started having sex in the next two years.
  
• In contrast, 48.5 percent of students who attended other classes, including details on contraception, became sexually active.

"One of the things that's exciting about this study is that it says we have a new tool to add to our repertoire," Monica Rodriguez, vice president for education and training at the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, said in Rob Stein's Feb. 2 Washington Post article.

Labels: pregnancy, sex-education

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A worried mom recently wrote into USA Todays Dennie Hughes, asking for advice about her 15-year-old daughter, who is pregnant. The womans husband is insisting that the daughter and her boyfriend get married, but mom isnt sure thats a good idea.

An excerpt of Hughes's response:

Marriage is the last thing anyone should be talking about. You two need to talk to your daughter about her immediate future. According to pregnantteenhelp.org, more than two-thirds of teens who have babies don't graduate from high school, and most unwed teen moms end up on welfare.

First, seek counseling about your daughter's options regarding her pregnancy (the facts on everything from adoption to abortion), and, if she's keeping the child, prenatal care and parenting classes (check local hospitals and community centers for information).

Labels: pregnancy

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The teenage pregnancy rate in the United States increased by 3 percent in 2006, the latest year for which reliable statistics are available. The nation recorded a 4 percent increase in births and a 1 percent increase in abortions among adolescent girls, according to a new study from Guttmacher Institute.

This is the first time in 10 years that pregnancy rates among teens has not gone down.

• Between 1990 and 2005, the pregnancy rate declined 41 percent among females ages 15 to 19 years old .
  
• This represented a drop from 117 pregnancies per 1000 girls to 70 per 1000.
  
• Abortions declined 56 percent among teenagers during that same period.

"It is too soon to tell whether the increase in teen pregnancy between 2005 and 2006 is a short-term fluctuation, a more lasting stabilization or the beginning of a significant new trend, any of which would be of great concern," said Lawrence Finer, director of domestic research at the Institute.

A U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study published in the journal Pediatrics found an increase of 1 percent in the teen birth rate in 2007.

Labels: pregnancy, health, teenagers, abortion

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About half of all sexually active unmarried young adults are not using contraception even though most think pregnancy should be planned, according to a study by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy.

• Researchers surveyed 1,800 people ages 18 to 29 about their use of contraceptives.
• Forty percent said it did not matter whether people use birth control.
• Over 60 percent said they knew little or nothing about birth control pills, and 30 percent said they had little knowledge of condoms.
• About one third of respondents said that birth control pills cause serious health problems such as cancer.
• Almost 30 percent of women and 42 percent of men said it was "at least slightly likely" that they would have unprotected sex in the next three months.

According to the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, about half of all pregnancies in the United States are unplanned.

Labels: pregnancy, birth-control

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The terms teen pregnancy and good news dont often appear together in the news, but an Oct. 20 article by Odile Fredericks of Carolina Parent indicates that there is reason to be optimistic about teen pregnancy trends in North Carolina:

North Carolinas teen pregnancy rate hit a 30-year low last year, according to new data from the state Department of Health and Human Services. Teenage girls in North Carolina had 217 fewer pregnancies in 2008 than in 2007.

The data shows that 58.6 out of every 1,000 girls ages 15 to 19 became pregnant in 2008. The new rate reflects a 7 percent decrease from the 2007 rate of 63 per 1,000 girls. A small portion of this decrease can be attributed to a change in the way the state demographer calculates total population.

Teen pregnancy rates in North Carolina have consistently decreased since 1991, following a spike in the late 1980s, according to DHHS. Pregnancy rates fell across all age, racial and ethnic categories, as well as in all but 25 North Carolina counties. Abortion rates also decreased in all categories.

Labels: pregnancy

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Jourdan Dunn, a 19-year-old model who appears on the cover of Teen Vogue's November issue, is pregnant. She tells a bit of her story in the magazine. While some are concerned about the message the magazine is sending, others see it as an opportunity.

An Oct. 27 Associated Press article addressed the controversy:

"Teen pregnancy is a difficult, real-life issue that Teen Vogue readers (with an average age of 18) are mature enough to be exposed to," [Editor-in-Chief Amy] Astley said in a statement. "Teen Vogue felt it was important to support, not punish, Jourdan Dunn, who contributed to a beautiful photo shoot and who will surely have an ongoing and successful career in fashion." ...

"There's no message to send to them that that's not OK. Maybe if she's on the cover to tell them 'Be careful,' that's one thing," said Catherine Essig, a 19-year-old sophomore at Dallas' Southern Methodist University, who was concerned about 15- and 16-year-old readers.

Many advocates said parents should use the cover as a way to talk to their kids about sex and the importance of planning pregnancies for the right moment in their lives.

"Teen parenting isn't glamorous, even if you are a teen model," said Valerie Huber, executive director of the National Abstinence Education Association.

Labels: pregnancy, media_influences

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Dr. Drew Pinsky is best-known for his shows Strictly Sex with Dr. Drew on Discovery Health and Celebrity Rehab on VH1. Now, hes adding his voice to the important issue of teen pregnancy with an hour-long special on MTV called 16 and Pregnant: Life After Labor.

The show that Dr. Drew will host will serve as the first-season finale of MTV's 16 and Pregnant series, which has been renewed for a second season. Dr. Drew will speak to the new moms about their efforts to deal with the challenges of teen parenthood.

Dr. Drew told MSN that one of the more surprising aspects of his interview with the girls was their honesty. They readily admitted that life as a parent is much, much harder than they expected, and that losing their youth to parenthood was painful, he said.

Labels: pregnancy, parenting

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Teenage pregnancies increased in 2006 and 2007, according to a new government study. Rates had been declining since 1991. Researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention looked at data from 2002 to 2007, and found that sexually transmitted diseases were also increasing among teenagers.

• The number of cases of syphilis increased among people ages 15 to 24 years old.
• About one million people in that age group had chlamydia, gonorrhea, or syphilis.
• One in four females ages 15 to 19 had a human papillomavirus infection.
• The number of AIDS cases among males 15 to 24 years old is also increasing.

"This report identifies a number of concerns regarding the sexual and reproductive health of our nation's young people," said Janet Collins, director of CDC's national Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. "It is disheartening that after years of improvement with respect to teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, we now see signs that progress is stalling and many of these trends are going in the wrong direction."

The study appeared in the journal Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Labels: pregnancy, teenagers

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After a 14-year decline, the teen birth rate in the United States rose in 2006 and 2007. According to a June 18 post by Washington Post blogger Rob Stein, one expert believes that the rising birth rate doesn't mean more that teens are having sex, but that fewer are using contraception:

In an article being published in the July issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health, [John Santelli of the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health] and his colleagues report that the increase does not appear to be the result of a rise in sexual activity.

Although teen sexual activity might have risen slightly between 2001 and 2003, it appears to have remained fairly flat since then, the researchers found.

Instead, the researchers found that there appears to have been a subtle decrease in contraceptive use, including a slight increase in the use of the withdrawal method and the proportion of teens reporting no contraceptive use.

But perhaps most importantly there was a small but significant drop in condom use, which fell from about 57 percent to about 55 percent from 2003 to 2007.

Santelli reached his conclusions after analyzing data on girls in grades nine through 12 -- information that had been collected during the U.S. government's Youth Risk Behavior Survey.

Labels: pregnancy, sex

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Summer is a time for cookouts, grilling, and -- unfortunately -- teen pregnancies. Pregnancies among teenagers typically rise during the summer months, mostly because teens have more free time and are less supervised.

[Psychotherapist Mary Jo] Rapini says a simple way to keep your child from becoming a parent before they are ready is to get and stay involved in their lives. She says parents who share their lives with their children and who show interest in their kids' lives are less likely to have a teen who becomes a parent. (Source: MyFox Houston)

Teenage girls who feel alone or isolated are more likely to engage in various types of risky teen behavior, including sex. Staying connected and aware of what your teenager is doing, and who shes with, can help prevent this type of behavior.

Worried that your teen daughter's unhealthy attitudes and inappropriate behaviors are leading her down a dangerous path? Take a moment to learn how a wilderness program can help teen girls get back on track toward a happy and healthy future.

Labels: pregnancy, teenagers, girls, summer

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A decades-old Montana program that helps teen mothers complete their education may be forced to close due to financial difficulties that are affecting the county's public school system.

A June 3 article by Michael Moore of The Missoulian News Online reported on the dire straits facing Sentinel High School's "Young Family" program:

The program, which has been around since the early 1980s, is now threatened by the $1 million budget shortfall in the Missoula County Public Schools.

"We've been going for 25 years, and it would be a tragedy for the girls and their children if we lost it," said Lois Reimers, the Sentinel teacher who directs the program.

The program provides licensed day care for the children of teens, and that's a savior for young mothers, six of whom are now using the program. The children are on campus, so the moms can see them during the day without missing classes.

Amy Rober, who works for a service that provides home learning opportunities for pregnant teens and teen mothers, told The Missoulian that the dropout rate for pregnant high school students is about 80 percent.

Teen pregnancy remains a cause of great concern in the United States, with teen parents facing a number of daunting educational, financial, and developmental challenges.

Labels: education, pregnancy, teenagers

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The teen pregnancy rate is rising in the U.S. state of Georgia, and pediatric health advocates are arguing that ineffective outreach efforts are creating a crisis within the state. In a May 5 post on the website of Georgia television station WMGT-41, Liz Foster reported that at least one expert predicts that the situation may not improve any time soon:

Three in ten girls in the U.S. become pregnant at least once before age 20. That's according to the Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention's website, which also says Georgia has the 8th highest teen birth rate in the nation.

Dr. David Harvey with the North Central Health District, says part of that can be blamed on state budget cuts, which have trimmed family planning program funds by almost 20 percent. He calls the issue a "major problem" in Middle Georgia and says it will get worse before it gets better. ...

Dr. Harvey says teen pregnancy rates permeate all socioeconomic statuses and affect everyone. From hospital space to medical costs, he says each pregnancy has an impact on society.

Many experts have warned that continued increases in teen sex rates have been associated with a wide range of social, developmental, and health problems.

Labels: pregnancy, health, teenagers, sex

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MEI Futures Academy, a residential charter school for teenage mothers in Washington, D.C., has been ordered to close because of chronic truancy, curriculum problems, and questions about the quality of services that were provided for special education students.

The school, which had been in operation for the past two years, provided both boarding and day school services to young mothers (ages 14 to 21), as well as kindergarten and pre-K programs for students' children who were between the ages of three and five.

According to an April 21 article by Bill Turque on the Washington Post's "DC Wire" blog, the D.C. Public Charter School Board claimed that MEI Futures Academy was in "material violation" of its operating agreement:

MEI had struggled to establish an acceptable curriculum, officials said, adding that none of its high school students were on track for a diploma. Last year, not one of the 15 tenth graders who took the DC-CAS standardized test achieved proficiency levels in either reading or math. Enrollment has dwindled to just 31 students from 66 in fall 2007.

Chronic truancy was an especially serious issue. An unannounced audit earlier this year showed that 17 of the 31 students were not there.

Charter schools such as MEI are not the only option for teen mothers who are struggling to complete their education. For example, at Youth Care, Inc., a private therapeutic boarding school in Draper, Utah, students can enroll in a unique teen pregnancy program that features counseling, behavior therapy, academics, and parenting education.

Labels: education, pregnancy, parenting, teenagers, girls

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Teens who watch the most television programs with sexual content are more likely to get pregnant or to get their girlfriends pregnant, according to a study that appeared in the journal Pediatrics.

Dr. Anita Chandra, a researcher at Rand Corporation, surveyed 2000 children ages 12 to 17 old in 2001, and then contacted these children again in 2002 and 2004. About 14 percent of those in the study became teen parents, and this group watched more shows with sexual content. The researchers took into account factors such as race and parental education.

"These findings add to the growing body of evidence that what children see on screen affects their behaviors in real life," said Dr. Dmitri Christakis, a professor at the University of Washington and an expert on children's television.

Labels: pregnancy

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Writing in response to the announcement that the unmarried 17-year-old daughter of Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin is five months pregnant, a New York University professor claims that the "sex ed. vs. abstinence only" debate ignores the greatest influence on teen pregnancy: poverty.

In an article that appeared in the Sept. 4, 2008, edition of the San Francisco Chronicle, history and education professor Jonathan Zimmerman wrote that fears of teen moms being condemned to poverty are based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the relationship between being pregnant and being poor:

Bearing a child as a teenager doesn't hurt a woman's prospects for education, job advancement or marriage. Ditto for her kids, who don't suffer any measurable consequences from having a teenage mother.

Instead, they suffer for a much more basic reason: They're poor. About two-thirds of teenage mothers live at or below the poverty line at the time they give birth. The less income and opportunity that you have, the more likely you are to become a teenage parent.

So Americans have it exactly backward. Teen pregnancy doesn't deprive our kids of life chances; instead, kids who lack those chances are the ones who get pregnant.

Though he admits that "nobody knows why" impoverished girls are more likely to become young mothers, Zimmerman offers two possible causes: that girls in poverty lack the confidence and self-esteem to insist upon contraception, and that financial and cultural pressures make it less likely that poor girls will abort their pregnancies.

"All things being equal, of course, it's still best for our teenagers - and for their offspring - to delay parenthood," Zimmerman wrote. "But all things are not equal, and that's the whole point here. The hype over teen pregnancy diverts us from the truly serious problem in American society, which is the growing poverty of teenagers themselves."

Labels: pregnancy, sex, poverty

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A study released this week found that teen pregnancy rates are dropping faster in Canada than they are in the United States. From 1996 to 2006, rates fell by nearly 37 percent in Canada, and 25 percent in America.

Like [Alex] McKay, [Louise] Moody believes falling teen pregnancy rates are a result of better-informed young people making smarter choices about sex, but they also reflect young women who see a future for themselves that might include something other than motherhood, she says.

In her experience, many of the young women who choose to become parents aren’t following the ‘traditional trajectory’ through school to a career, she says, and they often lack role-models or stable homes. [Source: CanWest News Service]

According to the same study, teen birth rates fell in England and Sweden as well, but the declines were not as significant. Of course,teen pregnancy remains a persistent problem in all of the nations involved in the study.

 

Labels: pregnancy, canada

Posted By: Stefanie Hamilton 0 Comments