Study finds 1 in 4 US teens has a STD

By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer  

CHICAGO - At least one in four teenage American girls has a sexually transmitted disease, suggests a first-of-its-kind federal study that startled some adolescent-health experts.

Some doctors said the numbers might be a reflection of both abstinence-only sex education and teens' own sense of invulnerabilty. Because some sexually transmitted infections can cause infertility and cancer, U.S. health officials called for better screening, vaccination and prevention.

Only about half of the girls in the study acknowledged having sex. Some teens define sex as only intercourse, yet other types of intimate behavior including oral sex can spread some diseases.

Among those who admitted having sex, the rate was even more disturbing — 40 percent had an STD...

The teens were tested for four infections: human papillomavirus, or HPV, which can cause cervical cancer and affected 18 percent of girls studied; chlamydia, which affected 4 percent; trichomoniasis, 2.5 percent; and genital herpes, 2 percent.

The result of not openly discussing sex and its consequences with our teens???  Frightening findings...  I would include a picture from one of my old health books, but it would probably be too graphic.  It was a picture of genital warts that could make anyone gag.  Why they don't show it to teens, I don't know.  Informed teens make informed decisions!

I was wandering through Toys R Us yesterday, shopping for a baby shower present, when my husband picked up a little toy lawnmower and declared that we must buy it for our son.  It was one of those striking moments when I realized just what a mom I've become.  I no longer think, "Oh, that's a great toy!  How fun!"  Now a series of questions run through my head:

1. Is this toy age appropriate?
2. Does the toy have any loose parts that could be choking hazards?  Are there any sharp edges or corners?
3. Is there any educational value to the toy?
4. Where was the toy manufactured?
5. Is the toy seasonally appropriate?
6. Is the toy too expensive?  Will it spoil him?
7. Should we hold off on buying toys until his birthday, so he doesn't assume that a trip to the toy store automatically means he'll get a toy too?

We did get him the lawnmower, and he loves it.  He pushes it all over the house, and as usual, he flips it upside-down to play with the wheels.  My husband isn't as thrilled with it now that he discovered that it sings these horrible, cheesy little songs whenever my son pushes it.  I think I heard my husband mumbling threats about removing its batteries already.

My parents came up to visit today and they only nodded their heads when I told them what a parent I was becoming.  It seems they had the same feeling when my sisters and I were young.  They climbed trees like monkeys as children but the day my sisters and I began climbing trees, that parental instinct came out full force.  As my dad puts it, there's nothing like coming home from a long day at work to see a note on the front door that says "Went to ER, Kelly broke her arm."