Change is a fact of life. The American Society has gone through a significant transformation over the last few decades and so has its attitude towards sex. Americans now have more liberated attitudes towards sex, and this fact was also confirmed by a survey of 19,000 U.S. college students . Just because the change is inevitable doesn’t mean it is always openly embraced, which may explain why there remains strong opposition to giving birth control to teenagers. The critics are influenced by a number of reasons for their opposition to giving birth control to children including religious beliefs and the idea that easy access to birth control leads to promiscuous lifestyle. But such an opposition ends up doing more harm than good. The society should provide the teenagers with a convenient and an easy access to birth control tools because of tremendous benefits such as lower rate of unwanted pregnancies and safer levels of sexual activity among the teenagers.
The teenagers should be provided with easy access to birth control because it lowers the prospects of unwanted pregnancies that may significantly reduce the long-term economic and social wellbeing of the teenage mother. A study by the researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found that the free contraceptives combined with educational programs can significantly reduce the possibility of unwanted pregnancies among the teenagers. This is a significant finding because the teenage pregnancy rate in the U.S. remains high as compared to many other industrial countries, with more than 600,000 teens becoming pregnant in the U.S. on an annual basis . Thus, it is only rational to provide the teenagers with easy access to birth control because it doesn’t only affect the teenage parents but their children also who may grow up under less-than-ideal circumstances.
The teenagers should be provided with an easy and convenient access to birth control because birth control tools also help with safer levels of sexual activity. The HHS Office on Women’s Health claims male latex condoms provide the best defense against the STDs including HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B, and herpes . Other birth control tools that may be less effective but still provide some defense against the STDs include the female condom, diaphragm, spermicide, and cervical cap .
The access to birth control tools should also be mad easier because it will help combat the stigma against the birth control tools. A research by The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy found seven in ten teens do not use the birth control tools out of fear of being found out by their parents . In other words, the fear of their parents’ disapproval is influencing them to engage in riskier sexual behaviors. Providing an easy access to birth control tools will help us send the message to teens that it is not only ok but recommended to use the birth control tools.
Americans now have quite liberated sexual attitudes. There is low social stigma against sexual relationships outside marriage. But not everyone has embraced the current attitudes towards sexual relationships which also explain the opposition to an easy access to birth control for the teenagers. But such an opposition does more harm than good. Not only it increases the prospects of unwanted pregnancies among the teenagers but it also exposes the teenagers to higher risk of STDs including AIDS/HIV and hepatitis B. Moreover, the negative social stigma discourages many teens to use them even when they may have access to the birth control tools.
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Can contraception reduce the risk of getting a sexually transmitted disease (STD)? 19 April 2016
- Nicholson, Christie. Attitudes toward Sex Are Changing. 19 August 2012. 19 April 2016
- Wallace, Kelly. Survey says teens skip birth control because they fear parental judgment. 7 May 2015. 19 April 2016
- WebMD. Barrier Methods of Birth Control. 19 April 2016
- Williams, Diana Duke. Teen pregnancies, abortions plunge with free birth control. 1 October 2014. 19 April 2016
