Welcome to Pregnancy Guide
Stop Teenage Pregnancy Article
. For a permanent link to this article, or to bookmark it for further reading, click here.
You may also listen to this article by using the following controls.
The Facts on Teenage Pregnancy in South Africa
from:As with many developing countries, the rate of teenage pregnancy in South Africa is high. Most people argue that this is a substantial problem for the country, and is an expression of a failure to help young girls deal with sexuality. This failure leads to not only pregnancies and abortions, but also to STDs and HIV and AIDS; many believe that adolescents in South Africa are in desperate need of adequate sex education and confidential contraceptive services.
There are many factors behind teenage pregnancy in South Africa. Often, adequate knowledge of contraception is lacking, due to negative attitudes regarding sexual activity before marriage. Young girls are not educated about contraceptive use because many believe there is no need to educate them; they must wait until they are married to have sex anyway.
Teenage pregnancy in South Africa is mainly a problem among women who live in rural, poverty-stricken areas; South Africa’s urban female adolescents, however, are also at a high risk of finding themselves pregnant at an early age. These urban girls have become addicted to drugs, alcohol, and expensive lifestyles; to ensure that they have the money for their desires, they sadly stumble onto the path of prostitution and often become pregnant and drop out of school.
Unfortunately, there are a number of myths, the most prominent being that sleeping with a virgin will cure HIV-AIDS, that actually promote the rape of young women. In many cases, these victims are left pregnant. Education regarding these myths and other issues relating to teenage pregnancy in South Africa are believed to be fundamental in dealing with the problem of adolescent pregnancy. Many education programs, however, are controversial, as is the practice of forcing a young girl who is visibly pregnant to drop out of school; furthermore, a consensus has not been reached as to what degree tradition should play in educating young girls.
One controversial practice that may be impacting teenage pregnancy in South Africa is that of virginity testing in rural KwaZulu-Natal, where girls on average between the ages of 7 and 26 allow a stranger to check if their hymens are intact. The girls are overjoyed when the test confirms they are virgins. People supporting this practice say that it is an effective tool in stopping the spread of teenage pregnancies and HIV, while opponents claim that the practice is unconstitutional, unhygienic and a violation of human rights. Advocates of the practice also agree that virginity testing is unhygienic at the moment, as the tester touches up to 600 girls a day, often with bare hands and without washing hands between girls; however, advocates claim that if the government supported the practice, there would be funding to purchase gloves, food, and areas where girls could be tested in private. Furthermore, many supporters of the practice argue that in a country where rape of young girls is prevalent, virginity testing is proving to be a useful method of uncovering sexual abuse on young girls who fear speaking out about it.
Warning: file(http://www.searchfeed.com/rd/feed/TextFeed.jsp?trackID=Q3835304521&pID=62408&cat=stop+teenage+pregnancy&nl=5&page=1&excID=) [function.file]: failed to open stream: HTTP request failed! HTTP/1.1 404 Not Found
in /home/cwatchco/public_html/preparents/teenage/datas/searchfeed.php on line 8
Stop Teenage Pregnancy Specific links
Stop Teenage Pregnancy News
Youth Commission alarmed over rise in teenage pregnancy
THE National Youth Commission (NYC) expressed alarm on Friday over the recorded increase in teenage pregnancy reported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The NYC said the incidence of teenage pregnancy is reaching alarming proportions. “This problem is growing exponentially.
Read more...More Teen Girls Using Contraceptives: CDC
THURSDAY, May 3 (HealthDay News) -- More teenage girls are using contraceptives, which may explain part of the dramatic drop in the U.S. teen pregnancy rate, federal health officials reported Thursday.
Read more...Tennessee governor signs controversial "gateway sexual activity" bill
NASHVILLE, Tenn (Reuters) - Tennessee teachers can no longer condone so-called "gateway sexual activity" such as touching genitals under a new law that critics say is too vague and could hamper discussion about safe sexual behavior. Governor Bill Haslam's office Friday confirmed that he had signed the bill, which stirred up controversy nationwide and even was lampooned by comedian Stephen ...
Read more...Surprise! Birth control pills prevent pregnancy
NY Times blog rounds up reporting on a decline in the teen pregnancy rate and observations that the rate, by state, tends to track sex education and family planning practices. For example, states that report the highest use of birth control pills and other contraception devices tended to have lower rates of births to teens. Conversely: Of the five states with the highest rates of pregnancy among ...
Read more...Teen birthrates decline amid prevention efforts
Efforts to prevent teen pregnancy are showing signs of success, but health officials and educators say more must be done.
Read more...State to help victims of forced sterilization
Dozens have gathered to speak out about North Carolina's troubled past at a state sponsored hearing in Raleigh Tuesday afternoon over the issue of eugenics. State Lawmakers want to pay victims 50 thousand
Read more...Editorial: Contraception plan suffers by association
Sometimes in politics it is the singer that matters, not the song. When Social Development Minister Paula Bennett this week announced free long-acting contraception for beneficiaries, it somehow sounded offensive. It seemed to say...
Read more...