Grown-Up Guidelines Help Prevent Teen Pregnancy

The rate of teenagers having sex and getting pregnant is rising at an alarming rate. More and more high-schoolers are becoming pregnant and dropping out of high school. While this may be a sad reflection on society, we are also lucky that society has progressed enough to handle these situations. There are plenty of teen pregnancy programs that can help to prevent teen pregnancy, or that can help pregnant teenagers. However, prevention starts first and foremost he home, and parents should play a major role in preventing teen pregnancy.

Vital Values

Children are raised by the values of their parents, and when they grow up they generally share the same values. That said, it is important that parents teach their children from an early age the value of family and love. Such values, while they may not prevent teen pregnancy in all cases, often help teens to say "no" when they are in a sticky situation. Teaching children values gives them the tools to handle situations when they are not in the company of their parents.

Being Realistic

As parents, it is also important to be realistic. The idea of a teen keeping his or her virginity throughout high school is a nice one, but in many cases it is not practical. Abstinence is an effective lesson for many teens, but it does not reach others the same way. Instead of futilely trying to teach such teens about abstinence and values and virginity, it is important for parents to realize that their child might be having sex and, if so, they need to be safe about it. Using birth control and condoms can helo to prevent teen pregnancy.

Stay Involved

Many teen pregnancies are the result of univolved parents—those that are not aware when their child has a new boyfrind or girlfriend, and those that allow their children to come home at 3:00 in the morning. As a parent, it is important to be aware of who your child is dating and how long they have been dating for. It is also important to set limits about where your child and his or her significant other can be together, especially when you are not home.

An Inadequate Substitute

Teen pregnancy programs can prevent teen pregnancy in some situations, but far better results occur when the message comes from the parents. Parents should not rely on school and public programs to do their job.