Birth control pills for middle schoolers?

I think BC should be in the water...and no I'm not kidding, but to give it to 11-13 year olds without parental consent? WTH??!!

NO ... I would approve of it with a dr perscribing it for the other reasons many take the pill for medical reasons .. BUT NOT at school these parents may be signing the sheet thinking they are okaying the school giving out aspirin not BC

Sorry but this it totally insane. We are talking about BC for 12-14 yrs old!

First of all, at that age you are JUST beginning your periods. Your body is adjusting to things and you don't even have a REGULAR period every month! And now you are putting BC hormones in your body when your body is not even ready?


Second, its not a good idea (and been proven) to be on BC for long periods of time. It should be short term - a few years for pills, etc. Otherwise it messes up your system.

So if the girls are given BC pills (which they won't take on a consistent basis at the SAME time every day; or miss a pill) at age 12; what happens when they are 18 and should be starting on the BC? They've already had this in their bodies for 6 years. They can't continue taking it for another 10 yrs without being affected negatively!

If an adult had sex with an 11 year old child, they'd be locked up, and for a good reason.
So, how can it be a good idea to give such a child a birth control pill?
Couldn't this potentially be covering up a serious crime?
They don't know who this 11 year old is having sex with for her to need birth control.

11-13 year olds without parental consent is a little to much.

Well, I really think that birth control should be easily available to all of those who want it - regardless of whether we feel that they should be having sex or not. Making birth control unavailable isn't going to stop them.

HOWEVER, at such a young age, the birth control pill might not be the best option. Especially for girls too young to know their own medical history or to understand the risks.

I think here it's only at 14 years of age that kids can go see a doctor and have all the information kept from their parents if they want to. I think at that age, it is a very important thing to have... but I don't know how much younger that should be pushed.

I certainly hope that very few middle-school kids are sexually active, but regardless of whether they start in their early teens or late teens, condoms seem like a better choice for people who are starting to become sexually active because they protect against STDs as well, and are less likely to cause any adverse reaction.

11 years old is below the age of consent, at least in most states.
Legally these children can not even consent to having sex.
Yet they are going to be given birth control in schools?
It does not seem right to me at all.

I'm on the fence about this topic. On one hand it is good because at least they will have birth control, but on the other hand the parent should probably be involved. Let's face it though, what young girl (anyone under 18 to be honest) would ask their parent permission. If parents were more understanding I would agree to parental consent.

In the end though, we must admit that girls are having their periods sooner, which has been linked to weight (overweight young girls are having them even soon) 80-90 lbs seems to be the weight your body thinks it can handle a child. Once you have your period you also start feeling sexual tension. Having your period means you are capable of having children and if you are capable of having children your body tells you it needs to have sex in order to do that. We can't just blame the girls, we can't just blame the parents, we can't just blame their friends, and we can't just blame society. Sadly it's such a problem there is no one answer.

So 3% of the middle schoolers admit to having sex and the other 97% of the student population is given the option for contraceptives in addition to the 3%.

I guess I'm really torn on this. I remember middle school and I would have DIED to talk to my parents about anything regarding sex. Friends OK, but parents no. Plus with the number of sexual predators out there that continually grow (it seems) I would think I would almost consider my child to go on BC.

Yet did the reseach or does anyone know the long term consequences of placing women that young on birth control?

I guess I would rather see any school encourage condoms over birth control...mainly because condoms not only reduce the risk of pregnancy, but also STDs and HIV/AIDS.

Well, I strongly disagree that these girls should be given birth control pills without parental consent. 14 and up, is a different matter to me, but 11-13, the parents should know.

However, I think a doctor's prescription for birth control pills at that young an age would be fine. This is because, despite the name, birth control can be used for other things, as most of us, I'm sure, know.

I started my period at 10. It was extremely heavy, lasted for 7 days, sometimes 8. At least 5 of those days were in the extremely heavy range. It was irregular, though I did have one once a month. It was also extremely painful. I had horrible cramps that would incapacitate me and subsequently I would wish for death at least one day a month for years.

This went on until I was 16, and the cramps diminished for no reason. Everything else stayed the same. I still had cramps, but I didn't lay on my bed hoping I would die. I went on birth control when I was 18. The cramps were almost gone, and not as painful when I did have them. My periods became regular and then went down to 3-4 days a month.

The reason my mother didn't put me on the birth control pill as an adolescent was because of that faulty research which claimed that pill would lead to breast cancer. Birth control pills are safe for girls to use that young, and having gone throught the hell I did, I would strongly recommend birth control pills to any girl who honestly needs them.

I think one big problem with the birth control pill is the name, since it can be used for other reasons, including clearing up acne. Because it is called "birth control" a lot of parents would not consider giving it to their daughters to help with problems it can legitimately be used for.

Tricia

If anyone gave my child a serious drug, ANY prescription drug without my knowledge I would sue them for millions.

Prescription drugs have serious side effects. I would kick some serious bootie, figuratively speaking of course

i have to agree, no one has any business pushing drugs to my kids.
even the goverment.

ESPECIALLY the government.

Wow, that's quite a bad idea... I say this mainly because the pill does NOT prevent STDs and I worry about the ability of preteens being able to understand that. Schools shouldn't be pre-empting parents at such a young age, and I am SOOOO sick of schools thinking they're doctors. Like when they tell you your child can't come to class until he's on Ritalin.

High school, different story.

I have to agree there!

I can understand talking about it but not dispensing it. They do not know the medical history if the students.

Let me clarify the story slightly. Parents have to give permission for the students to use the clinic over all. They dispense other things besides birth control and condoms. Because of health care laws if a child who is using the clinic with their parent's permission doesn't want them to know they are using birth control they can't say anything.

I'm really torn about this because I know that there are 13 year old girls and boys out there having sex. They should be allowed to have access to some sort of safety precaution. However, 11-13 is also WAY too young to have sex. Hopefully the school system is adding comprehensive sex education along with the access to the birth control measures.

EDIT: The second paragraph details what the clinic does: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/18/us...=1&oref=slogin