Why abstinence doesn work

What most parents don't count on, however, is for their kids to be told that condoms cause cancer and that women get cervical cancer because of "promiscuity".

Or that "each time a sexually active person gives that most personal part of himself or herself away, that person can lose a sense of personal value and worth. These false, ideologically-driven programs are turning out sexually illiterate young people whose lives and health are put in literal danger by "educators" handing out false information. All this, just so your teenager might be scared straight enough to forgo sex for a few extra months.

In the wake of a human rights complaint by a Canadian student and her mother, the Edmonton Public School board agreed last week not to use the curricula and program provided by the Edmonton Pregnancy Care Centre.

The religious center is part of a large network of "crisis pregnancy centers" that aim to stop women from getting abortions, often through lying and bullying tactics. According to student Emily Dawson , the abstinence instructor shamed students, refused to talk about the needs of the LGBTQ community, and gave out false information about contraception and single-parent homes. The teacher also told students that gonorrhea could kill you within three days and that girls should "watch what they wear" because boys don't have self-control.

When Dawson's mother complained, she was told her daughter could opt to write an essay — forgoing sexual education entirely — or fail the class. That's when they moved forward with their complaint. Students need sexual education that's comprehensive, medically accurate, and free from shame and ideology.

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Jan 26, , am EST. Oct 29, , pm EDT. Oct 27, , pm EDT. Oct 13, , pm EDT. An early analysis by his organization showed some attitude shifts toward delaying sex among students in the abstinence programs, but those differences disappeared as students got older. One thing they also learned, Trenholm said, was that kids receiving abstinence instruction did not use condoms less often than other kids, a possibility that critics occasionally raise.

They also showed slightly better knowledge about the prevention of sexually transmitted disease. But when the research team looked at the long-term findings, they found that, as students got older, these impacts disappeared - that is, students receiving abstinence-only instruction displayed the same attitudes and behaviors as those who did not.

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