“This is not the first time that beliefs and wished have trumped evidence in science and public health. Scientists of the Middle Ages developed a whole science of alchemy by wishing that the baser elements could be converted to gold” (McFarlane 2). The continuation of teaching abstinence-only education trumps evidence given by scientists and professors who state that it is unrealistic and censors young adults from dangerous consequences when certain precautions are not taken. If the intent for sexual education is to prevent teenage pregnancies and sexual diseases, then the teaching of abstinence-only education should be replaced with curricula that creates a safer and more informative background for young adults. Sexual education is defined
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As Deborah R. McFarlane wrote in her letter to the editor of the Journal of Public Health Policy about abstinence-only education:
Federal support for abstinence-only education has increased dramatically during the presidency of George W. Bush, who believe that abstinence is the only fail-safe way to avoid sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancy. This belief, however, is not grounded in evidence, but in the hopes of Mr. Bush and Congressional conservatives. …show more content…
Bush (R, 2001-09)” (Teen Pregnancy Follow-Up). Abstinence-only education is funded far more than sexual education is and, in fact, is given one dollar for every twelve dollars that go into every other pregnancy prevention program in the United States (Teen Pregnancy). McFarlane reveals her dislike for the way the United States is spending taxpayers’ money by asking, “How many sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies could have been prevented if a billion and a half more dollars had been spent on contraceptives and prophylactics instead of for an untested experiment in abstinence-only education?” (2). This difference in funding and cost of not teaching students about sex has been claimed to be the reason for such a high teenage pregnancy rate in the United
As Deborah R. McFarlane wrote in her letter to the editor of the Journal of Public Health Policy about abstinence-only education:
Federal support for abstinence-only education has increased dramatically during the presidency of George W. Bush, who believe that abstinence is the only fail-safe way to avoid sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancy. This belief, however, is not grounded in evidence, but in the hopes of Mr. Bush and Congressional conservatives. …show more content…
Bush (R, 2001-09)” (Teen Pregnancy Follow-Up). Abstinence-only education is funded far more than sexual education is and, in fact, is given one dollar for every twelve dollars that go into every other pregnancy prevention program in the United States (Teen Pregnancy). McFarlane reveals her dislike for the way the United States is spending taxpayers’ money by asking, “How many sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies could have been prevented if a billion and a half more dollars had been spent on contraceptives and prophylactics instead of for an untested experiment in abstinence-only education?” (2). This difference in funding and cost of not teaching students about sex has been claimed to be the reason for such a high teenage pregnancy rate in the United