Recently, a furor erupted in the town of Gloucester, Mass., after a high school principal claimed publicly that at least some of his school's 17 students who became pregnant in the last year had done so as part of a pact.
News stories have since focused mostly on the extraneous: Was there really a pact? Were the girls influenced by last year's award-winning movie "Juno"?
But few have pointed out that the jump in the number of pregnancies at Gloucester High, which until now had averaged about four a year, is an extreme example of what may be a troubling trend: A national rise in the number of American teens giving birth.
Even Solano County has seen it. After more than a decade of decline, Solano's teen birth rate nudged up 1.7 percent between 2004 and 2006, the most recent year for which statistics are available.
A study released in May by the Public Health Institute noted that Solano's 488 teenage births in 2006 cost taxpayers $16 million annually in lost tax revenue and public medical and assistance costs. Add in the teen mother's lost income, productivity and private medical expenses, and the "societal costs" come to $35 million a year, the report said.
To its credit, Solano's 31.5 births per 1,000 teens is lower than the statewide average (37.8) and far better than the national average (41.9).
In fact, California is doing a better job preventing teen births than many other states. Some studies have suggested that is because California consistently has rejected abstinence-only sex education, instead favoring comprehensive programs that encourage abstinence while supplying those who choose to ignore that good advice with age-appropriate and medically accurate information about preventing pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.
Providing those programs isn't cheap. The Public Health Institute report, appropriately titled "No Time for Complacency," estimates the 2007-08 cost of the state's prevention programs at $229 million. "Yet," the report pointed out, "had California continued to experience its dismal teen birth rate of 71 per 1,000 from 15 years ago, we would have had an additional 46,283 teen births in 2006. Translated into cost savings, our success represents an annual savings to California taxpayers of $1.5 billion, and a total annual savings to society of $3.3 billion."
Some of those prevention programs may well lose funds as the Legislature and the governor wrestle with the $15 billion hole in California's budget. But as they contemplate cuts, lawmakers would do well to remember that prevention is far less costly in the long run.
Besides, as much progress as California has made in bringing down the teen birth rate, it's not nearly as good as it could be. As the report notes, the median rate of teen births in other Western democracies, including Canada, Australia, Japan and a dozen European countries, is 9.2 per 1,000.
Figuring out what those countries are doing that we aren't should be the next goal of California's pregnancy prevention specialists.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Parenting Teens Celebrate High School Graduation!
Parenting teens celebrate high school graduation
By ANDREA WOLF/Times-Herald staff writer
Article Launched: 06/06/2008 06:41:44 AM PDT
Tennile Jones, 18, of Vallejo, greets her three-year old daughter, Schlette, 3, at Courtyard Marriott in Fairfield Thursday evening at a teen parent high school graduation ceremony. (Mike Jory/Times-Herald) There were a lot of times in the past three years that 18-year-old Tennille Jones thought she was never going to get that diploma.
After having her daughter when she was only 15, getting through high school was a constant challenge.
"There was a lot of crying and a lot of blood, sweat and tears, especially in the beginning" said Jones, of Fairfield. "But my daughter is the light of my life and I knew I had to graduate for her."
Diploma now in hand, Jones said she is looking forward to starting at Solano Community College with hopes of someday becoming a probation officer.
To recognize the accomplishments of pregnant and parenting teens like Jones who overcame challenges and completed high school, the Shasta-Diablo Planned Parenthood held a graduation celebration Thursday at the Courtyard Marriott in Fairfield.
About 50 teens from Napa and Solano counties dined and danced at a combination graduation and prom night.
"Pregnant and parenting teens often don't get an opportunity to have a graduation or go to prom," said Tracy Nunley, director of communication services for Solano Planned Parenthood.
By ANDREA WOLF/Times-Herald staff writer
Article Launched: 06/06/2008 06:41:44 AM PDT
Tennile Jones, 18, of Vallejo, greets her three-year old daughter, Schlette, 3, at Courtyard Marriott in Fairfield Thursday evening at a teen parent high school graduation ceremony. (Mike Jory/Times-Herald) There were a lot of times in the past three years that 18-year-old Tennille Jones thought she was never going to get that diploma.
After having her daughter when she was only 15, getting through high school was a constant challenge.
"There was a lot of crying and a lot of blood, sweat and tears, especially in the beginning" said Jones, of Fairfield. "But my daughter is the light of my life and I knew I had to graduate for her."
Diploma now in hand, Jones said she is looking forward to starting at Solano Community College with hopes of someday becoming a probation officer.
To recognize the accomplishments of pregnant and parenting teens like Jones who overcame challenges and completed high school, the Shasta-Diablo Planned Parenthood held a graduation celebration Thursday at the Courtyard Marriott in Fairfield.
About 50 teens from Napa and Solano counties dined and danced at a combination graduation and prom night.
"Pregnant and parenting teens often don't get an opportunity to have a graduation or go to prom," said Tracy Nunley, director of communication services for Solano Planned Parenthood.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Women over 40 have more options for birth control - 04/05/08
(04-05) 04:00 PDT Atlanta --
Birth control choices are wider these days for women 40 and older - a group that once viewed its options as pretty much limited to tube-tying surgery and condoms.
For them, the Pill is back. So is the IUD. Both are safer than they used to be. There's even a nonsurgical method of tube-tying.
Traditionally, women 40 and older are the least likely to use birth control. Along with adolescents, they have the highest rates of abortion. At the same time, these women are more experienced at using contraception and follow instructions better.
When it comes to contraceptives for women 40 and older, "one size definitely does not fit all," said Dr. Vanessa Cullins, vice president for medical affairs at the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
A review of the current science of contraception and women 40 and older was published recently in the New England Journal of Medicine. The author, University of Florida gynecologist Dr. Andrew Kaunitz, noted that the risk of dangerous blood clots rises sharply at age 40 for women who take birth control pills containing estrogen. The risk is even greater for overweight women, who also are more likely to have high blood pressure and diabetes.
But the dosage of estrogen in current birth control pills has been dramatically reduced. The Pill is now considered a safe alternative for lean, healthy older women, Kaunitz and other experts said.
"It may not be well known that the current low-dose formulations are a reasonable option for healthy women in their 40s," said Dr. JoAnn Manson, a Harvard endocrinologist who wrote a book on menopausal hormone therapy.
The Pill may be preferable for some women, because it can help control irregular menstrual bleeding and hot flashes and has been shown to reduce hip fractures and ovarian cancer, wrote Kaunitz. He has received fees or grants from several companies that make oral contraceptives.
But middle-aged women who are obese, smoke, or have migraines, high blood pressure or certain other risk factors should be steered toward IUDs or progestin-only treatments like "mini-pills," experts said.
Higher breast cancer rates have been reported in older women who took estrogen-progestin pills for menopause. However, studies did not find an increased breast cancer risk in women 35 and older who took oral contraceptives.
The most common form of contraception for women 40 and older continues to be sterilization - a category that counts tubal ligations (tube-tying) in women as well as vasectomies in their male partners.
Increasingly, gynecologists are offering a newer type of tubal ligation that is nonsurgical. The procedure, called Essure, was approved by the government in 2002. Instead of cutting through the abdomen to cut and tie the fallopian tubes, a doctor works through the cervix, using a thin tube to thread small devices into each fallopian tube. These cause scarring, which in about three months plugs the tubes, stopping eggs from the ovaries from reaching the uterus.
Also relatively new is a product called Implanon, approved by the government in 2006. It's a matchstick-size plastic rod, placed under the skin of the upper arm, that is a more modern cousin of Norplant and can last about three years.
"Things have definitely changed. There are a lot more options for older women than there used to be," said Dr. Erika Banks, director of gynecology at New York City's Montefiore Medical Center.
Friday, April 4, 2008
HPV not just a threat to women - 04/02/08
While men are not typically at risk of dying or developing cancer after contracting the human papillomavirus, it is a sexually transmitted infection that demands some attention.
In 2008, about 11,070 U.S. women will be diagnosed with invasive cervical cancer, according to the American Cancer Society Web site.
"I think men are often left out of the HPV talk," said Devora Lomas, health educator for Planned Parenthood Shasta-Diablo.
HPV can not only lead to cervical cancer in women, but certain strains cause genital warts in both men and women, she said.
Lomas thinks both men and women are becoming more aware of what HPV is and the side effects, but there is still work to do, she said.
Sophomore R.J. Osborne remembers learning in high school that HPV can cause genital warts, he said. But most of his friends probably don't know what HPV is.
Because so many men and women in college have HPV, it's important for students to be informed and protect themselves, Osborne said.
"You have to wrap that shit up," he said.
But condoms aren't perfect.
Using condoms correctly can help decrease the spread of HPV, but a condom is only effective on the part of the penis that is covered, said Dr. Jeff Thomas, the Student Health Center's chief of clinical medicine.
HPV is spread through skin-to-skin contact, Thomas said. And because men can have warts not just on the penis, but in the areas above and surrounding the penis as well, condoms won't always protect against infection.
Most men and women who have HPV are not aware of it, which also contributes to the spread, he said. People usually go undiagnosed unless there are obvious signs, like external warts.
Warts can appear externally on the penis and surrounding areas, as well as both internally and externally on and around the anus and vagina, Thomas said. In extremely rare cases, usually in individuals with compromised immune systems, HPV infections can be oral.
In men with compromised immune systems, HPV can in rare cases cause penile and anal cancers, Thomas said. However, this usually occurs in men who have diseases such as HIV.
Most men and women with healthy immune systems will overcome HPV, and the infection will go away, he said. The problem is there are so many strands of HPV that it is easy to become infected again with a new sexual partner.
The Health Center saw 429 men and 641 women with genital warts from fall 2006 to spring 2007, Thomas said.
Sophomore Jesse Jansen didn't know what HPV was until he was interviewed. But he's glad he knows about it now, he said.
"They should make men more aware about HPV, just as much as with any other STD," Jansen said.
Thomas thinks most of his male patients who come in for STI exams or who are diagnosed with genital warts are knowledgeable about STIs and want to be informed, he said.
"But then again, I'm only seeing the students that come in," he said. "I don't know how much general knowledge there is out there in the student body."
Even though HPV in men is mostly manifested as genital warts, which typically go away, there is the potential of passing it to a partner, Thomas said.
It is a personal health issue for men just as much as it is a relationship issue, he said.
"It's showing a sign of respect for your partner to protect yourself and in the process protect your partner," Thomas said.
Gardasil, the same HPV vaccine available for women, is being tested on men by the Food and Drug Administration, Thomas said.
"You could come up with a good argument that since women get HPV from their partners, it would make sense if men were vaccinated, too," he said.
So far the trials are showing that Gardasil is just as effective on men as it is on women, he said. But whether the drug will be approved for men by the FDA is still up in the air.
The Health Center saw 18,011 students for STI screening tests from fall 2006 to spring 2007, Thomas said, who encourages students with questions or concerns about HPV and other STIs to visit the Health Center for more information.
"These are equal opportunity infections," Thomas said. "They don't care whether it's a man or a woman - both sexes can be infected."
Nicole Williams can be reached at
nwilliams@theorion.com
Both Planned Parenthood and the Student Health Center are resources for students who want STI screening, treatment or just have questions. Students can call the health center at 898-5241 or visit their site for further information.
In 2008, about 11,070 U.S. women will be diagnosed with invasive cervical cancer, according to the American Cancer Society Web site.
"I think men are often left out of the HPV talk," said Devora Lomas, health educator for Planned Parenthood Shasta-Diablo.
HPV can not only lead to cervical cancer in women, but certain strains cause genital warts in both men and women, she said.
Lomas thinks both men and women are becoming more aware of what HPV is and the side effects, but there is still work to do, she said.
Sophomore R.J. Osborne remembers learning in high school that HPV can cause genital warts, he said. But most of his friends probably don't know what HPV is.
Because so many men and women in college have HPV, it's important for students to be informed and protect themselves, Osborne said.
"You have to wrap that shit up," he said.
But condoms aren't perfect.
Using condoms correctly can help decrease the spread of HPV, but a condom is only effective on the part of the penis that is covered, said Dr. Jeff Thomas, the Student Health Center's chief of clinical medicine.
HPV is spread through skin-to-skin contact, Thomas said. And because men can have warts not just on the penis, but in the areas above and surrounding the penis as well, condoms won't always protect against infection.
Most men and women who have HPV are not aware of it, which also contributes to the spread, he said. People usually go undiagnosed unless there are obvious signs, like external warts.
Warts can appear externally on the penis and surrounding areas, as well as both internally and externally on and around the anus and vagina, Thomas said. In extremely rare cases, usually in individuals with compromised immune systems, HPV infections can be oral.
In men with compromised immune systems, HPV can in rare cases cause penile and anal cancers, Thomas said. However, this usually occurs in men who have diseases such as HIV.
Most men and women with healthy immune systems will overcome HPV, and the infection will go away, he said. The problem is there are so many strands of HPV that it is easy to become infected again with a new sexual partner.
The Health Center saw 429 men and 641 women with genital warts from fall 2006 to spring 2007, Thomas said.
Sophomore Jesse Jansen didn't know what HPV was until he was interviewed. But he's glad he knows about it now, he said.
"They should make men more aware about HPV, just as much as with any other STD," Jansen said.
Thomas thinks most of his male patients who come in for STI exams or who are diagnosed with genital warts are knowledgeable about STIs and want to be informed, he said.
"But then again, I'm only seeing the students that come in," he said. "I don't know how much general knowledge there is out there in the student body."
Even though HPV in men is mostly manifested as genital warts, which typically go away, there is the potential of passing it to a partner, Thomas said.
It is a personal health issue for men just as much as it is a relationship issue, he said.
"It's showing a sign of respect for your partner to protect yourself and in the process protect your partner," Thomas said.
Gardasil, the same HPV vaccine available for women, is being tested on men by the Food and Drug Administration, Thomas said.
"You could come up with a good argument that since women get HPV from their partners, it would make sense if men were vaccinated, too," he said.
So far the trials are showing that Gardasil is just as effective on men as it is on women, he said. But whether the drug will be approved for men by the FDA is still up in the air.
The Health Center saw 18,011 students for STI screening tests from fall 2006 to spring 2007, Thomas said, who encourages students with questions or concerns about HPV and other STIs to visit the Health Center for more information.
"These are equal opportunity infections," Thomas said. "They don't care whether it's a man or a woman - both sexes can be infected."
Nicole Williams can be reached at
nwilliams@theorion.com
Both Planned Parenthood and the Student Health Center are resources for students who want STI screening, treatment or just have questions. Students can call the health center at 898-5241 or visit their site for further information.
Friday, March 28, 2008
Planned Parenthood Celebrates 2008 “Back Up Your Birth Control”
Planned Parenthood Celebrates 2008 “Back Up Your Birth Control” Campaign Day of Action To Ensure Access to and Awareness of Emergency Contraception
Washington, DC — Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) today celebrates the 2008 Back Up Your Birth Control Campaign Day of Action to raise awareness of emergency contraception (EC), a safe and effective backup birth control option for women and teens. In honor of the Day of Action, Planned Parenthood launched a new YouTube video to highlight the availability of emergency contraception at Planned Parenthood affiliate health centers across the
“Emergency contraception is safe and effective, and Planned Parenthood is committed to making sure every woman and teen knows about this backup birth control option,” said PPFA President Cecile Richards. "Every woman deserves full access to every option available to prevent unintended pregnancy.”
EC lowers the risk of pregnancy when started within 120 hours of unprotected intercourse. The sooner backup birth control is taken, the better it works, making timely access critically important. Nevertheless, the FDA restricts young women's access to EC by requiring a prescription for EC for anyone under age 18.
“With as many as 750,000 teens becoming pregnant each year, it is time for all of us to take action and ensure our young people have information on and access to affordable birth control, including emergency contraception,” Richards said.
For more information about EC, please visit www.plannedparenthood.org.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Contra Costa Times: Alarming STD Rates - 3/17/08
Contra Costa Times
WHAT DOES IT SAY about a culture when one of every four girls between the ages of 14 and 19 has a sexually transmitted disease?
What does it say about that culture's failure to teach girls self-respect and self-esteem that makes them value themselves as something other than sexual objects?
That is what all Americans -- not just those with teen daughters -- should be asking in the wake of the shocking study released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
CDC researchers found that out of a test sample of 800 girls, 25 percent tested positive for STDs. We're talking about trichomoniasis, genital herpes, chlamydia or the human papillomavirus.
One of two African-American teens had an STD, compared with 20 percent of whites and Latinos, respectively.
Proponents of expanding sex education in public schools say the CDC findings offer proof that we need to make condoms and birth control pills more readily available for teen girls in public schools.
Cecile Richards, president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of American, proclaimed, "The national policy of promoting abstinence-only programs is a $1.5 billion failure, and teenage girls are paying the real price."
True, despite the Bush administration's suggestions to the contrary, abstinence-only programs don't work.
"Just say no" has little chance against a teen's raging hormones. We need real sex education classes in schools.
However, we also need to do more to discourage our girls, and boys, from having sex when they're not mature enough to take proper precautions or handle the consequences.
How do we get through to teens when everything in our culture encourages them to engage in dangerous, high-risk behavior?
We believe public health officials around the country must launch an aggressive public advertising campaign warning of the risk of STDs -- just as there has been a national effort to crack down on teen smoking.
Many teens are ignorant about the risks. Girls and boys need to be told, for instance, that they can become infected through oral sex as well as intercourse.
It is only through a steady bombardment of messages -- to counter the constant barrage of a sex-soaked culture -- that we can begin to change teen attitudes.
Many parents are in denial. No one wants to believe that their child has a venereal disease. These parents need to get a grip.
Nearly 3 million teen girls across the nation are believed to be carrying STDs, and many don't even know it.
Some STDs can damage a woman's reproductive organs and even cause cervical cancer and other life-threatening illnesses.
Parents must have candid conversations with their children and make sure they have access to sex education in school. Their lives may depend on it.
WHAT DOES IT SAY about a culture when one of every four girls between the ages of 14 and 19 has a sexually transmitted disease?
What does it say about that culture's failure to teach girls self-respect and self-esteem that makes them value themselves as something other than sexual objects?
That is what all Americans -- not just those with teen daughters -- should be asking in the wake of the shocking study released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
CDC researchers found that out of a test sample of 800 girls, 25 percent tested positive for STDs. We're talking about trichomoniasis, genital herpes, chlamydia or the human papillomavirus.
One of two African-American teens had an STD, compared with 20 percent of whites and Latinos, respectively.
Proponents of expanding sex education in public schools say the CDC findings offer proof that we need to make condoms and birth control pills more readily available for teen girls in public schools.
Cecile Richards, president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of American, proclaimed, "The national policy of promoting abstinence-only programs is a $1.5 billion failure, and teenage girls are paying the real price."
True, despite the Bush administration's suggestions to the contrary, abstinence-only programs don't work.
"Just say no" has little chance against a teen's raging hormones. We need real sex education classes in schools.
However, we also need to do more to discourage our girls, and boys, from having sex when they're not mature enough to take proper precautions or handle the consequences.
How do we get through to teens when everything in our culture encourages them to engage in dangerous, high-risk behavior?
We believe public health officials around the country must launch an aggressive public advertising campaign warning of the risk of STDs -- just as there has been a national effort to crack down on teen smoking.
Many teens are ignorant about the risks. Girls and boys need to be told, for instance, that they can become infected through oral sex as well as intercourse.
It is only through a steady bombardment of messages -- to counter the constant barrage of a sex-soaked culture -- that we can begin to change teen attitudes.
Many parents are in denial. No one wants to believe that their child has a venereal disease. These parents need to get a grip.
Nearly 3 million teen girls across the nation are believed to be carrying STDs, and many don't even know it.
Some STDs can damage a woman's reproductive organs and even cause cervical cancer and other life-threatening illnesses.
Parents must have candid conversations with their children and make sure they have access to sex education in school. Their lives may depend on it.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Study: 1 in 4 teens has an STD - 3/11/08
Study: 1 in 4 teen girls has an STD
Story Highlights
First study of its kind shows nearly 3 million teen girls have an STD
HPV, which can cause cervical cancer, is the most prevalent
Nearly half of all African American females tested had at least one STD
Doctors: Screening, vaccination, prevention among highest health priorities
A virus that causes cervical cancer is by far the most common sexually transmitted infection in teen girls aged 14 to 19, while the highest overall prevalence is among black girls -- nearly half the blacks studied had at least one STD. That rate compared with 20 percent among both whites and Mexican-American teens, the study from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found.
About half of the girls acknowledged having sex; among them, the rate was 40 percent. While some teens define sex as only intercourse, other types of intimate behavior including oral sex can spread some infections.
For many, the numbers most likely seem "overwhelming because you're talking about nearly half of the sexually experienced teens at any one time having evidence of an STD," said Dr. Margaret Blythe, an adolescent medicine specialist at Indiana University School of Medicine and head of the
But the study highlights what many doctors who treat teens see every day, Blythe said.
Dr. John Douglas, director of the CDC's division of STD prevention, said the results are the first to examine the combined national prevalence of common sexually transmitted diseases among adolescent girls. He said the data, from 2003-04, probably reflect current rates of infection.
"High STD rates among young women, particularly African-American young women, are clear signs that we must continue developing ways to reach those most at risk,"
The CDC's Dr. Kevin Fenton said given that STDs can cause infertility and cervical cancer in women, "screening, vaccination and other prevention strategies for sexually active women are among our highest public health priorities."
The study by CDC researcher Dr. Sara Forhan is an analysis of nationally representative data on 838 girls who participated in a 2003-04 government health survey. 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 herpes simplex virus, 2 percent.
Blythe said the results are similar to previous studies examining rates of those diseases individually.
The results were prepared for release Tuesday at a CDC conference in
HPV can cause genital warts but often has no symptoms. A vaccine targeting several HPV strains recently became available, but
Chlamydia and trichomoniasis can be treated with antibiotics. The CDC recommends annual chlamydia screening for all sexually active women under age 25. It also recommends the three-dose HPV vaccine for girls aged 11-12 years, and catch-up shots for females aged 13 to 26.
The American Academy of Pediatrics has similar recommendations.
Blythe said some doctors also are reluctant to discuss STDs with teen patients or offer screening because of confidentiality concerns, knowing parents would have to be told of the results.
The
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Forum A Success! - 2/20/2008
The North Vallejo Health Collaborative held a wildly successful community forum and celebration at
The forum was to gather input on priorities for the Healthy Start grant and for the
Elsa Widenmann student Kelby Yelder was honored for her role in saving her family from a disastrous house fire. Thanks to Mayor Osby Davis, Fire Chief Russ Sherman and his crew of
One highlight was that I accepted a major financial contribution from the Solano Community Foundation to complete the funding for the North Vallejo Health Clinic. The vision of putting a
Our thanks go out to all North Vallejo Health Collaborative members for all the time, energy and resources contributed for this day. We are grateful to: Vanita Finney and the VCUSD Student Health Services Dept. staff; Glen Price of the Glen Price Group; Marie Young and the Solano County Chapter of Links Inc., and the whole Links crew; Dr. James Foy and the Touro University volunteers; Daniel Lamons for organizing, bringing in the Youth Partnership; Deanna Niebuhr for organizing refreshments; Deloris Doster's class for the poem of affirmation; Laura Moreira's class for a beautiful rap presentation; wonderfully facilitated by Gordon; the Junior Safety Patrol performing under the leadership of Sara Sanchez; Stephanie Wolf and the Solano Community Foundation; Christina Arrostuto; Lynn Guest and First 5 for the "dot" posters and videography; Babies First; Black Infant Health; Children's Network of Solano County; Fighting Back Partnership; Kappa Beta Omega Chapter; La Clinica; Pharmacy Assistance Program; Planned Parenthood; Solano Coalition for Better Health; Solano Community Foundation; Solano County Health and Social Services; Solano Kids Insurance Program; John Williams and Aimee Durfee of United Way of the Bay Area for a ton of great organizing and contribution to the costs of the event; Dr. Tam Stevenson for the insights behind the student presentation and program organization; and to the teachers, staff, families and students of Elsa Widenmann School.
MaBella Gonzales, Principal,
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Pregnant Mother, Families Get Support!
Pregnant mothers, families get support
By ANDREA WOLF/Times-Herald staff writer
Article Launched: 02/24/2008 08:11:09 AM PST
Terrell Isom, who attended the baby shower with his pregnant fianc\é, Beatrice Johnson and their 10-year-old daughter, Makayla, said he learned a lot about what his fianc\é is going through and how he can help out.
"It made me realize that I need to tend to things I normally overlook, like washing dishes," Ison said. "I need to ease her burdens for the good of my fianc\é's health and the baby's."
The event, called "A More Excellent Way Baby Shower," was hosted by Tabernacle of David Missionary Baptist Church and the Solano County Black Infant Health Coalition.
"I learned a lot of critical information today about breast feeding and just taking care of myself," Johnson said. "Like formula in a can not being necessarily bad, but it can't substitute breast milk."
Monique Sims, co-chair of the Black Infant Health Coalition, said one of the main goals of the annual event is to educate African American families about the importance of breast feeding and prenatal care.
"Families need to understand pregnancy is a fragile time and moms really need to take care of themselves," Sims said.
The shower included a free meal, games, prizes, workshops and provided health resources for families.
"Everyone here was working feverishly to spoil the moms," Sims said.
While the mothers were being taken care of, fathers attended a men-only informational group led by the Rev. Nicholas McCray.
"It gives the men an opportunity to express how they feel about the woman they love being pregnant and also ask questions if they don't think they are going to be in a relationship with her," Sims said. "Reverend Nicholas explained how they will be in a lifetime relationship of parenting even if they are no longer together with the mother."
Courtney Gates, who attended the baby shower with her 4-month-old baby Serenity, said she appreciated the chance to meet other new mothers going through the same things she is experiencing.
"There are a lot of great resources here," Gates said. "Like how I can get an early head start on my baby's education by reading to my belly."
Sims said the Black Infant Health Coalition hopes to increase breast feeding rates in the Solano County African-American community.
Studies show babies who are breast fed have a healthier immune system, have a lower risk of chronic diseases such as asthma and diabetes and have a lower chance of childhood obesity.
Recent studies say breast feeding can also lower the mother's risk of Type 2 diabetes, ovarian cancer and breast cancer.
Each year the community baby shower is held at a different local church and organizers help make the host church more baby and mother friendly.
With help from Napa-Solano Kaiser Permanente and First 5 Solano Children and Families Commission, Sims and other volunteers installed baby changing tables and created comfortable breast feeding areas for women while they attend services.
Sims said about 120 people showed up to Saturday's event and there were considerably more men in attendance than in years prior.
"It's all about the community coming together to benefit the families," Sims said.
Parents are invited to a follow-up session from 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday at the Tabernacle of David Missionary Baptist Church.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
U.S. abortions drop to lowest level since 1976 - 02/19/08
U.S. abortions drop to lowest level since 1976
Rob Stein, Washington Post
Thursday, January 17, 2008
(01-17) 04:00 PST Washington - --
The number of abortions being performed in the United States has dropped to 1.2 million a year - the lowest level since 1976, according to a new report.
The drop was driven by a decline in the overall rate women of childbearing age getting abortions, which fell about 9 percent between 2000 and 2005, according to a nationwide survey.
At the same time, the long decline in the number of abortion providers appears to be stabilizing, at least in part because of the availability of the controversial abortion pill RU-486, the report found.
The report did not identify reasons for the drop in abortions, but the researchers said it could be due to a combination of factors.
"It could be more women using contraception and not having as many unintended pregnancies. It could be more restrictions on abortions making it more difficult for women to obtain abortion services. It could be a combination of these and other dynamics," said Rachel Jones of the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health research organization publishing the report in the March issue of the journal Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health.
Whatever the reasons, the trend was welcomed by both anti-abortion and abortion rights advocates.
"This study shows that prevention works, and that's what we provide in our health centers every day," said Cecile Richard of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. "At the end of the day, Americans of all stripes believe that we need to do more to prevent unintended pregnancy and make health care affordable and accessible."
"It's still a massive number, but it's moving in the right direction," said Randall O'Bannon of the National Right to Life Committee, adding that least some of the drop may be due to changing attitudes.
"Even look at Hollywood," said O'Bannon, citing the hit movie "Juno," about a pregnant teenager who decides against abortion. "More and more people are starting to reconsider their positions."
Suzanne Poppema of the Physicians for Reproductive Health and Choice speculated that wider availability of the morning-after pill also might be playing a role.
"I would like to say that it's at least partially due to increased availability of emergency contraception, which is a really good addition to reproductive health care in this country," Poppema said. The emergency pill, a high dose of standard birth control pills, can prevent pregnancy if taken within 72 hours of having unprotected sex.
The report was based on a survey of all known abortion providers that the Guttmacher Institute has been conducting regularly since 1974 and is considered one of the most authoritative sources of data on abortions in the United States. The latest survey, of 1,787 providers, was conducted in 2005 and was the first since 2000.
The total number of abortions among women ages 15 to 44 declined from 1.3 million in 2000 to 1.2 million in 2005, an 8 percent drop that continued a trend that began in 1990, when the number of abortions peaked at more than 1.6 million, the survey found. The last time the number of abortions was that low was 1976, when slightly fewer than 1.2 million abortions were performed.
The abortion rate fell from 21.3 per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44 in 2000 to 19.4 in 2005, a 9 percent decline. That's the lowest since 1974, when the rate was 19.3, and far below the 1981 peak of 29.3.
The abortion rate varies widely around the country, tending to be higher in the Northeast and lower in the South and Midwest.
The fall came amid a continued decline in the number of abortion providers. It slipped 2 percent since the last survey, but that drop was much smaller than in previous years.
Jones noted the introduction of the so-called French abortion pill RU-486, now more commonly known as mifepristone. The drug, approved in 2000, allows women to terminate pregnancies without the need for a surgical procedure.
"We found that there were providers who previously didn't offer surgical abortions and are now only providing early medical abortions," Jones said. "If it wasn't for those providers, the number of providers would have declined by far more."
By 2005, 57 percent of abortion providers were offering the drug, accounting for 13 percent of abortions, the report found.
That trend is disturbing to O'Bannon of the National Right to Life Committee, who questioned the safety of the drug.
"It disturbs me that that there are clinics that that may not have been doing abortions before and are doing them now, and that there are doctors who may not have been doing abortions before but are now," he said.
But advocates said they are encouraged by the increased availability of mifepristone, which they say has been shown to be both effective and safe.
"One of the objections to the abortion pill was that it was going to cause the abortion rate to go sky high. But this shows that didn't happen," Poppema said.
Rob Stein, Washington Post
Thursday, January 17, 2008
(01-17) 04:00 PST Washington - --
The number of abortions being performed in the United States has dropped to 1.2 million a year - the lowest level since 1976, according to a new report.
The drop was driven by a decline in the overall rate women of childbearing age getting abortions, which fell about 9 percent between 2000 and 2005, according to a nationwide survey.
At the same time, the long decline in the number of abortion providers appears to be stabilizing, at least in part because of the availability of the controversial abortion pill RU-486, the report found.
The report did not identify reasons for the drop in abortions, but the researchers said it could be due to a combination of factors.
"It could be more women using contraception and not having as many unintended pregnancies. It could be more restrictions on abortions making it more difficult for women to obtain abortion services. It could be a combination of these and other dynamics," said Rachel Jones of the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health research organization publishing the report in the March issue of the journal Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health.
Whatever the reasons, the trend was welcomed by both anti-abortion and abortion rights advocates.
"This study shows that prevention works, and that's what we provide in our health centers every day," said Cecile Richard of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. "At the end of the day, Americans of all stripes believe that we need to do more to prevent unintended pregnancy and make health care affordable and accessible."
"It's still a massive number, but it's moving in the right direction," said Randall O'Bannon of the National Right to Life Committee, adding that least some of the drop may be due to changing attitudes.
"Even look at Hollywood," said O'Bannon, citing the hit movie "Juno," about a pregnant teenager who decides against abortion. "More and more people are starting to reconsider their positions."
Suzanne Poppema of the Physicians for Reproductive Health and Choice speculated that wider availability of the morning-after pill also might be playing a role.
"I would like to say that it's at least partially due to increased availability of emergency contraception, which is a really good addition to reproductive health care in this country," Poppema said. The emergency pill, a high dose of standard birth control pills, can prevent pregnancy if taken within 72 hours of having unprotected sex.
The report was based on a survey of all known abortion providers that the Guttmacher Institute has been conducting regularly since 1974 and is considered one of the most authoritative sources of data on abortions in the United States. The latest survey, of 1,787 providers, was conducted in 2005 and was the first since 2000.
The total number of abortions among women ages 15 to 44 declined from 1.3 million in 2000 to 1.2 million in 2005, an 8 percent drop that continued a trend that began in 1990, when the number of abortions peaked at more than 1.6 million, the survey found. The last time the number of abortions was that low was 1976, when slightly fewer than 1.2 million abortions were performed.
The abortion rate fell from 21.3 per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44 in 2000 to 19.4 in 2005, a 9 percent decline. That's the lowest since 1974, when the rate was 19.3, and far below the 1981 peak of 29.3.
The abortion rate varies widely around the country, tending to be higher in the Northeast and lower in the South and Midwest.
The fall came amid a continued decline in the number of abortion providers. It slipped 2 percent since the last survey, but that drop was much smaller than in previous years.
Jones noted the introduction of the so-called French abortion pill RU-486, now more commonly known as mifepristone. The drug, approved in 2000, allows women to terminate pregnancies without the need for a surgical procedure.
"We found that there were providers who previously didn't offer surgical abortions and are now only providing early medical abortions," Jones said. "If it wasn't for those providers, the number of providers would have declined by far more."
By 2005, 57 percent of abortion providers were offering the drug, accounting for 13 percent of abortions, the report found.
That trend is disturbing to O'Bannon of the National Right to Life Committee, who questioned the safety of the drug.
"It disturbs me that that there are clinics that that may not have been doing abortions before and are doing them now, and that there are doctors who may not have been doing abortions before but are now," he said.
But advocates said they are encouraged by the increased availability of mifepristone, which they say has been shown to be both effective and safe.
"One of the objections to the abortion pill was that it was going to cause the abortion rate to go sky high. But this shows that didn't happen," Poppema said.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Wine, Women, and Shoes featued on In Wine Country - 1/9/08
Check it out! In Wine Country, a weekly series airing on NBC stations that brings the unique wine country lifestyle home to you, featured Planned Parenthood: Shasta-Diablo's Wine, Women and Shoes event. Last year's event was held at the Honig Winery in the gorgeous Napa Valley.
Watch the video at the In Wine Country Web site!
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