Teens & Condoms

With all the newest information about the prevalance of STDs among teen girls, nothing new to the public health community although we had to discuss it "sotto-voce", we not only need to be sure that children are taught about problems of sexiual intimacy early, but that they undestand the value of condoms. Certain parents think it irresponsible to teach children about sexual behavior, so they let them get misinformation from their peers, while failing to educate their children themselves. Then they wonder about how the teens became infected with an STD. While condoms may occassionly fail (much rarer than activists would have you believe) they are still the next best thing to abstinence which is rare in today's environment. I can remember back to my youth just after the end of WW2 when girls would not go out with a boy if they did not see the outline of a condom in his back pants pocket. Maybe we need to resurrect this habit Since the advent of "birth control pills' all the onus for sexual outcomes has been placed on the girl instead of the boy.