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A study claims the declining teenage pregnancy rate in the US since 1990 is down to better use of improved contraceptive, such as condoms, use rather than young people abstaining from sex. The drop was noted in the United States between 1995 and 2002 and was not due to abstinence.
The researchers, from Columbia University and the Alan Guttmacher Institute, said their study casts doubt on federal funding of programs that promote abstinence until marriage without discussing contraception options. The data write that that abstinence accounted for only 14% of the fall in teenage pregnancies over the last decade, while 86% was due to better use of contraceptives and condoms. There was a 27% drop in the teenage pregnancy rate during the decade up to 2002. The study found that in 2002 sexually active teenagers had better use of contraceptive methods, including condoms and birth control pills than in 1995.

???These data suggest that the US appears to be following patterns seen in other developed countries where increased availability and increased use of modern contraceptives have been primarily responsible for declines in teenage pregnancy rates,??? the researcherss write.
???Our findings,??? they conclude, ???raise questions about current U.S. government policies that promote abstinence from sexual activity as the primary strategy to prevent adolescent pregnancy.??? Among younger teens 15 to 17 years old, increased contraceptive use was responsible for 77 percent of the pregnancy risk decline while decreased sexual activity was responsible for 23 percent of the decline. The report cited increases in the use of both condoms and birth control pills. In addition, more young people are combining methods for extra protection, it said.

The US government has come under fire for its policy on teenage pregnancy, which includes funding education programmes which eschew promotion of contraception in favour of abstinence. Many publicly funded programs in the USA promote abstinence-only-until-marriage at the cost of education on contraception – these programs prohibit information about the advantages/benefits of condoms and contraception.
“The United States seems to be following the recent patterns in other developed countries where increased availability and use of modern contraceptives and condoms have led to remarkable declines in teen pregnancy,” said lead author John Santelli. “If most of the progress in reducing teen pregnancy rates is due to improved contraceptive use, national policy needs to catch up with those realities.”

A spokeswoman for the group Focus on the Family, a national leader in the abstinence campaign, said she could not comment on the study because the organization had not seen it. But, she said, “If sexuality education is taught in a condom-plus-abstinence format, the message is mixed and nondirective. Students are left confused as to the best health choice.”
Anne Weyman, chief executive of the Family Planning Association, said it was clear that the abstinence-only approach to sex and relationships did not work.
“Robust contraception services, comprehensive sex and relationship education and a mature attitude to young people’s sexuality are the key components in bringing down teenage pregnancy.
“If we are expecting young people to make responsible decisions about their sexual health, they need information and support to do it. Simply telling them not to have sex isn’t enough.”

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