It’s about time these folks got their act together. The Midland, Texas school board decided that their abstinence-only sexual propaganda program wasn’t working. Of course, there’s been plenty of research showing that, but what changed their minds was the 150 pregnancies among their students since the start of the school year in August. Since their […]

The NY Times reported today that anyone working out at a gym needs to be really careful to avoid skin infections such as MRSA, impetigo, jock itch, or athlete’s foot from contact with other people’s skin or from gym equipment. These Gym Transmitted Infections (GTIs- a term I just made up) can be annoying, in […]

CNN posted an article today called “The Downside of  ‘Friends with Benefits,’” which is another example of someone writing about sex without taking a look at their own assumptions about sex, relationships, and how people work. The focus of the article is the increase of STIs and the claim that having more than one partner […]

I recently read an amazing report by The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy called The Fog Zone: How Misperceptions, Magical Thinking, and Ambivalence Put Young Adults at Risk for Unplanned Pregnancy (PDF). It’s a thorough and impressive bit of research about the gap between what young adults know about contraception and their […]

As you may have heard, the news is all worked up about a study showing that an abstinence-based sex education program is effective at encouraging teens to delay having sex. And, of course, the abstinence-only crowd is jumping on it, too. (Thanks to Feministing for the legwork on digging up the links!) Of course, there’s […]

I’ve written before about how abstinence-only sex miseducation doesn’t work, as have lots of other people. Here’s another piece of evidence. According to the report to Changing Behavior Risk for Pregnancy Among High School Students in the United States, 1991–2007, which the Guttmacher Institute released, teen pregnancy rates are clearly linked to contraceptive use. It’s […]

Given that the Obama administration has stopped funding abstinence-only sex misinformation, I’m sure that lots of schools are scrambling to figure out what to do. Fortunately, Planned Parenthood just launched an amazing site which is full of resources, information and support. If you work with kids, or if you have kids, or if you know […]