A recent article in Time magazine reported that the teen pregnancy rate in the U.S. has risen three percent from 2005 to 2006 – the most current year for data – at 71.5 pregnancies per 1,000 teens.

However, comparing data from recent years to data from the 1950s through the 1970s cannot provide enough information on effective teen pregnancy prevention. In the 1950s for example, the social norm was for young women to have children and marry; today, however, children out of wedlock are common even for adults because, in fact, it is possible to raise a child in a nurturing and loving home without the institution of marriage.

Using the prevention method of abstinence from 30 to 50 years ago is no longer an effective tool because the social climate of marriage has changed. Instead, prevention of teenage pregnancy needs to be geared towards the realization that “scare tactics” of STDs and somewhat unrealistic vows of no sex until marriage for all teenagers cannot stop the sexual maturity and curiosity that comes with puberty.

Accepting the notion that most teenagers will have sex can provide better prevention methods and initiate safe sex knowledge. While most of us can remember our required sexual education in school, how many of us can remember being taught about the proper use of condoms, contraceptives and the reason why teenage pregnancy can be so dangerous?

I attended public schools until I reached St. Mary’s and I learned an awful lot about AIDS and herpes; but I just recently discovered that San Antonio has the highest number of teen pregnancies in the nation. Since then, I have conducted my own research on why prevention of teen pregnancy and the instruction of safe sex are important.

According to womenhealth.org, teen mothers are less likely to receive any higher education from the time they become pregnant. There are also complications that can occur during pregnancy, including fatality caused by improper care during pregnancy, and there is also an increased risk of sexual and violent relationships for both the mother and her child.

We can all think of a handful, or a few, of friends and acquaintances from high school who have become pregnant; do you remember how others treated them? American society sees a young girl pregnant and judges her life accordingly: she apparently cannot make good decisions and her future is all but shot. This stereotype of teen parents can also be extended to their babies by labeling their children as “mistakes,” which many people do. This creates a judgmental and hostile environment that is not exactly welcoming for teens that become pregnant and search for help, safety and guidance. When your teenage friends or acquaintances found out they were having a baby, how large was their fear of being looked down upon and being disrespected by others? And as a result, did they isolate themselves from others for a few months?

Teen pregnancy prevention can obviously only occur in those who are not already pregnant. Teens who become parents, both mother and father, need to have the resources to care for their child and themselves. Again, while most of us have a wealth of knowledge about STDs, I am sure only few of us know how often to feed a baby, what precautions to take and where to go if we do find out we are having a child.

Incorporating the skills of parenting and safe sex along with the knowledge of the risks of STDs will better prepare teenagers for when they do decide to have sex and hopefully will cause them to think about sex in the bigger picture and with a more mature attitude.