Talking To Your Kids About Sex and Sexuality...And Why It's Important

If you have teenage kids today, chances are that you grew up at a time where openly discussing sexual topics with anyone but your closest friends was considered a taboo. Chances are your parents would have enrolled you in a seminary, fully equipped with a creepy exorcist, if sex even crossed your mind before marriage. But today, we live in a world where sex seems to be at the root of every industry, from advertising, to job hunting, to pornography (which, by the way, happens to be the one of the, if not THE, largest online industry). As a result, it's probably more likely your kid will know what a reverse cowgirl is before he/she figures out that Santa isn't real.

So What's The Problem With That?
Besides the fact that, on average, kids are exposed to porn at age 11, and that 80% of teens aged 15 - 17 admit to watching pornography, a lot of what happens off the screen might be troubling. For example, in the USA, 1 out of 3 girls get pregnant before the age of 20. Although this is staggering, by itself it doesn't amount to a lot. However, when you consider that 8 out of 10 of these pregnancies are unintended, a.k.a. preventable, that's where you as a parent come in.

"Well What Can I Do?"
You'll be surprised to hear that the answer is, A LOT. According to a study done by one of University of Montreal's research centers, it turns out that "45% [of teens] consider their parents to be their sexuality role model," while only 32% tried to model their friends. I bet you're probably as surprised as everyone else, because apparently "78% of the mothers who participated in the survey believed that their children modeled their friends' sexual behaviour." The study also found that a lot of households lack paternal communication regarding sexuality, which is obviously very detrimental.


The point here is that you have your work cut out for you. Your child likely models his/her sexuality after you. The only thing you have to do is to actually talk to them, and make sure they understand all the risks that come with being sexually active. I've only briefly outlined some pregnancy statistics. However, things I haven't mentioned, like STDs and STIs are also very important topics to make your kids aware of.


Conclusion
Be a role-model for your kids, and be open about sexuality with them. Your actions, and those few conversations you have with them might make the difference between them having a successful career and marriage, and dropping out of highschool to raise a misconceived child.


Sources: http://esciencenews.com/articles/2011/06/15/teens.look.parents.more.friends.sexual.role.models
http://internet-filter-review.toptenreviews.com/internet-pornography-statistics.html
http://www.livestrong.com/article/12504-teen-pregnancy-rates-usa/