Existing research on the risks of having sex at a young age with an older partner has focused on poorer reproductive health outcomes in the adolescent years, but scant attention has been paid to the longer-term implications of these relationships. Using survey data from high school students, this "Fact Sheet" presents findings from recent Child…

"Teenagers and Their Babies" is a self-study and preparation guide for paraprofessional home-based visitors to engage expectant and new parents in an exploration of their baby's development and their expectations for parenthood. The guide includes service interventions--strategies, techniques, and activities--for home visitors and doulas to use…

Background: Following the occurrence of natural or man-made disaster, relief worker priorities include providing water, food, shelter, and immunizations for displaced persons. Like these essential initiatives, reproductive health education and services must also be incorporated into recovery efforts. Purpose: This study examined reproductive…

Internationally, as well as here in the UK, the concept of "peer pressure" is widely used in analysing the factors influencing young people's experiences of sex and pregnancy--illustrated, for instance, by the following strapline from a recent English government-funded teenage pregnancy national media campaign: "Should I let my…

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is an umbrella term that describes the range of effects associated with the diagnoses of Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAE) and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). FASD itself is not a diagnosis, but rather encompasses a wide range of symptomatic behaviors that occur in an individual whose mother drank alcohol during…

This paper examines the impacts of four abstinence-only education programs on adolescent sexual activity and risks of pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Based on an experimental design, the impact analysis uses survey data collected in 2005 and early 2006 from more than 2,000 teens who had been randomly assigned to either a…

This position paper considers the recent success of the abortion "reform" movement in the United States. A review of the arguments and data pro-abortionists have utilized to establish present policy suggests that this rather extreme solution to personal and social problems has been adopted without adequate evidence. (Author)

This report provides a brief overview of state policies and programs to address the problems of adolescent pregnancy and parenting. Section 1, a brief introduction, is followed by a section which examines a broad set of state policies and programs affecting at-risk youth, including pregnant teenagers and teenage parents. The state-by-state review…

Natural family planning (NFP) refers to techniques for planning or preventing pregnancy by observation of natural signs of fertility. In using natural family planning to avoid pregnancy, there is abstinence from sexual intercourse during the fertile phase of the menstrual cycle. Social values which are incorporated into the method include couples…

These three separate pamphlets provide background information, brief discussions of research findings, and guidelines and recommendations concerning selected aspects of diet. The first pamphlet discusses food additives and hyperactivity, focusing on both the Feingold theory and controlled experiments which do not support Feingold's clinical…

This paper is based on the assumption that delayed births among adolescent girls is one strategic point for intervention into the poverty cycle. (Author/RK)

This article presents the kind of information that the author feels should be readily available to young women who must make a decision regarding an unwanted pregnancy. (Author)

Notes that difficult questions arise concerning the use of sterilization for alleged eugenic and euthenic purposes. Thus, how reversible sterilization will be used with relation to the poor, mentally ill, mentally retarded, criminals, and minors, is questioned. (Author/AM)

Women who dropped out of family planning clinic services in Maryland used contraceptives for a considerable time beyond their last visit. However, unplanned pregnancies occurred, suggesting that contraceptive use was either inconsistent or ineffective. Thus, education and counseling must be systematic and effective during the first clinic visit.…