A report conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (http://www.cdc.gov/) determined that 1 in 5 sexually active teenage girls have used the morning-after pill. 10 years ago, 1 in 12 sexually active teenage girls had used the morning-after pill.
The report from the CDC was conducted from 2011 to 2013 and is based on surveys from 2,225 teenagers between the ages of 15-19.
When used within the first 72 hours, the morning-after pill reduces the likelihood of pregnancy after unprotected sex by 90%
Teen Birth Rates Down
There are 61 million U.S. women in their childbearing years at risk of unplanned pregnancy. The risk is greatest among 15-19 year olds (18%).
In the late 80’s teenage pregnancy rates were 96 in 1,000. Teenage pregnancy is now down to 27 in 1,000.
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In 2013 the age restriction was lifted. The morning-after pill typically costs $35 to $50.
According to the Guttmacher Institute (http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_contr_use.html) the risk of teen pregnancy is twice as high for those who do not use a contraceptive method during their first time. Teen pregnancy is often coupled with a series of negative consequences including less financial stability and an inability to finish high school.
Accessible Birth Control
Increased accessibility to birth control in addition to proper sexual education and understanding the risks of STDs is responsible for the decline in overall teenage pregnancy.
Condoms have remained the preferred method of birth control among teens. There has been no change in sales in regard to birth control pulls over the last few years.
According to the Guttmacher Institute (http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_contr_use.html) of the 3.2 million teenage women who use birth control, “53% use the pill, 16% use other hormonal methods, including the implant, injectable, patch and ring, and 3% use an IUD.”
Plan
Teen girls between the ages of 15 and 18 should be able to receive birth control and contraceptive without the consent of their parents because most believe that’s a good mature age. Birth control is a crucial factor in preventing pregnancies. Birth control motivates young females to be responsible and have knowledge about their sexual health and also have control on their general health. After interviewing
Unwanted pregnancies can be stopped. The morning-after pill can prevent a pregnancy if taken within 72 hours. It can reduce pregnancy by up to 89%. The pill has a higher dose of levonorgestrel, the hormone found in birth control pills. A survey conducted by Livescience.com showed that 22% of females that are of ages 15-19 that had sexual intercourse have used the pill at least once in their lives. The pill can also give teenś privacy.
Sexually active teens that don’t use birth control have a 90% chance of getting pregnant within a year (Guttmacher Institute). Most teens refuse to use birth control for their own personal reasons. Teens use birth control to opt out of having protected sex” (Center for reproductive Rights 80). There is a high percentage rate of teens that actually use condoms during sex. 74% of females used contraception the first time they had sex (Guttmacher Institute). The percentage of teens that used more than one form of contraception is very low. Approximately 25% of sexually active teens use 2 methods of birth control during sex (Guttmacher Institute). The rate of teens that use condoms and still get pregnant is very low. During the first year of “typical use”, 20 of teens under the age of 18 using condoms for contraception get pregnant within one year (Abstinence Programs 75). It proves that abstinence programs reach teens that are not easily influenced by sex.
With the rise of teen pregnancy parents are still afraid to allow their children to use birth control. If a teen is not sexual active, the dispensing of birth control in schools is not going to change that. "Previous research with adolescents has indicated that making contraceptive accessible does not increase sexual activity among adolescents who weren't previously sexually active.(qtd. In Women's health
Speculation of when life actually begins in the womb and whether or not the Morning After pill encourages sex amongst teenagers has been carried out for years and with that speculation, many perspectives have been formed for different sides of the pill. Data and opinions have been weighed in regards to the Morning After Pill, but though an examination of different perspectives on this controversial subject, research supports that the Morning After pill is receiving praise and possesses many benefits for women.
Statistics from recent studies suggest that only 13% of U.S. teens have ever had sex by the age of 15. But by the age of 19, seven in ten teens of both sexes have had sex. Between 1995 and 2006-2008, the percentage of teens aged 15-17 who had ever engaged in sexual intercourse declined from 38% to 28%. Among teens aged 18-19, it declined from 68% in 1995 to 60% in 2006-2008. The pregnancy rate among young women has declined steadily from 117 pregnancies per 1,000 women aged 15-19 in 1990 to 70 per 1,000 in 2005. However in 2006, the rate increased for the first time in more than a decade, rising to
The idea of Emergency Contraception is not a new to society, however it is still igniting many debates just as it did when it was first introduced to the United States. Emergency contraception continues to be a highly emotional and controversial issue, both for advocates who believe EC will lower the number of unintended pregnancies and abortions, and for opponents who believe that using EC amounts to an abortion. The controversy fueling this debate centers around one of the ways that emergency contraception works. Emergency contraception can prevent or delay ovulation, affect the movement of the egg or sperm: making them less likely to meet, it can also interfere with the fertilization process and prevent implantation of a fertilized egg.
Have you ever wondered how many how many women are using some form of birth control? Today more than 12 million women use birth control,(oral contraceptives), meaning this many girls are taking early precautions. This oral contraceptive is 99% effective, still at that between 2-8% of women will get pregnant while using it- being from misuse by the consumer. (“Five Reasons Women Get Pregnant While on the Pill.” Fox News, FOX News Network, www.foxnews.com/story/2008/06/16/five-reasons-women-get-pregnant-while-on-pill.html.) This being said many teen girls are still not on birth control because they are fearful of their parents reactions. Other’s opinions should not matter, but as humans emotions are always in the way of a seemingly easy answer. All teenage girls really want from their mothers is acceptance and for their mothers to not look down on them, but they are afraid that this idea will do the exact opposite.
Emergency contraception is defined as the safe and effective way to prevent a pregnancy after unprotected sex (Planned Parenthood, 2015). The emergency contraception pill, is often called the morning- after pill. It uses high doses of hormonal levels to prevent unwanted pregnancies. Most of the different emergency contraception’s can work up to seventy- two hours after unprotected sex. Some can work all the way up to one- hundred and twenty hours, which is about five days. There are three well- known types of emergency contraception (Planned Parenthood, 2015).
Over the years there have been vast improvements made to birth control methods. Today there are a variety of contraceptives on the market such as oral, hormonal, surgical and physical. For years people have tried to control their fertility by using different methods and techniques. In 2011-2013, approximately 62% of women ages 15-44 were using some type of contraceptive method (Yarber, William, Sayad, & Strong, 2015). Methods of birth control that are available today range from permanent procedures for example surgical sterilization also known as tubal ligation to temporary methods that can be used during every act of intercourse, for example condoms both males and females.
Seven hundred fifty thousand teenagers, ages fifteen to nineteen, become pregnant each year (“Facts”). Teenage birth specialists have often debated whether or not teenagers should have access to birth control and other contraceptives. Although some people think teenagers having birth control will promote promiscuity, birth control should be accessible to teens because they will put themselves at a higher risk for disease and pregnancy without it, and more teenage girls would get a high school diploma with it.
Birth control has prevented many unwanted teen pregnancies, “According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, teen births in the United States reached a historic low in 2015, which can be explained in large part by an increased use of contraception among young people” (Gebelhoff, Robert). As of right now, women have to get a prescription to get oral contraceptives from their doctor. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, this movement to make access to these contraceptives is supported by them. Although, teenagers are more likely to use birth control pills compared to using condoms, they are not being influenced by their sexual or emotional pressures. This article also says, the public-health benefits from
About 40 percent of sexually active teenagers admit to not using any form of protection (like a condom) during their last session. Behavior like this leads to higher risks of pregnancy or even
The morning after pill needs to be available to females of all ages. It can help teenagers to avoid pregnancy at such a young age. “High Teen Pregnancies Blamed on Contraceptives” pointed out that, “Teen pregnancies are high due to low availability and accessibility to contraceptives or more,” (Nakabugo). Population rates would decrease if contraceptives were available to all women because it would have prevented any babies. With more accessibility and less restriction, teen pregnancies would plummet as will population. In “A Bitter Pill, Contraceptives in Egypt” they elaborated about how, “Hassan turned to the black market to get birth control, until those disappeared,” (A Bitter Pill, Contraceptives in Egypt). Hassan looked everywhere in her town for birth control and ceased to find any. Even the black market didn’t have any, suspicious? When contraceptives are made available and accessible to everywhere and everyone, then population and pregnancy rates will lower a lot.
"Over one million teenage girls become pregnant each year. In the next 24 hours, about 3,312 girls will become pregnant. In addition, 43% of all adolescents become pregnant before the age of 20. These are incredible statistics when you consider that there are only 31 million females. The United States has the highest adolescent pregnancy rate in the developed world. As statistics show one in nine women between the ages of 15 through 19 become pregnant each year. Also, every 26 seconds a teenage girl becomes pregnant and every 56 seconds a child of a teenage mother is born."