Abstinence or Safe Sex? In recent years, there has been a strong debate over what is better to teach young adolescents in regards to sex education. The classic argument involves differences in beliefs between teaching abstinence versus teaching safe sex using contraceptives. Much of this debate depends on one’s personal beliefs, often times his/her religious beliefs. The question is: which method helps prevent teen pregnancy better? Regardless of what a person may believe, there have been studies that show that teaching abstinence is not doing enough, and contraceptives have a more positive effect on teens. Contrary to popular belief, abortion rates are lower than they have ever been since abortion was made legal by the U.S. Supreme Court, …show more content…
This is one reason, along with religious beliefs, that parents think teaching abstinence is the best way prevent their children from having sex or getting pregnant. Unfortunately, most teenagers don’t make decisions with logic but make decisions based on their hormones and how they feel at the given moment. In fact, this can be said for most people regardless of age. Teenagers also often have a proven record in doing the exact opposite of what their parents want them to do. This is another reason why teaching abstinence alone does not work. When teens are taught about safe sex and how to use contraceptives, they are armed with tools to help them stay out of trouble in the cases where emotion rules over logic. Teen pregnancy in 2010 declined 51 percent from the historic peak of 1990 ("Teen Pregnancy Wanes As Education Improves"). There are many possible contributions to the decline, but none more than teens' exposure to evidence-based sex education, which “teaches them the risks of having and the benefits of delaying sex, but also how to discuss the subject effectively with their peers, partners and parents, and how to use birth control correctly” ("Teen Pregnancy Wanes As Education