Abstinence Sex Ed Useless

Sexual abstinence class is about as effective in preventing premarital sex as those who didn't attend the classes at all, according to a recent study.

It's funny. It's mostly religious social conservatives who back abstinence sexual education. These people are largely aware of the story of Adam, Eve, the Apple, and how making something mysterious and forbidden leads to undesirable results.

from the BBC:


The students in this study, which was ordered by Congress, came from a range of big cities across the United States, such as Milwaukee and Miami and from rural communities in Virginia and Mississippi.

They were 11 and 12 years old when they entered the abstinence programmes, which lasted one to two years.

The researchers also looked at the behaviour of their peers from the same communities who did not attend the classes.

The findings show that those who attended first had sex at about the same age as their peers - at 14 years and nine months.

The Bush administration has warned against drawing sweeping conclusions from the study.