Health News
- Fewer Ky. Teens Are Having Sex, And More Teens Are Using Birth Control When They Do; Teen Birth Rates Are At An All-time Low
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Fewer teens are having sex now than did in the last generation, and of those that do, more are using some form of birth-control, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Kentucky...
- Expectant Mothers Need To Get A Flu Shot
Expectant mothers need to get a flu shot as soon as it is available in their area, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Only the flu shot, not the nasal-spray vaccine, is recommended for pregnant women because it is made with the inactivated...
- Study Says '16 And Pregnant' Reality Tv Show Is Responsible For 5.7% Decline In Births To Teens, But Numbers Still High In Kentucky
The MTV show "16 and Pregnant" has been highly criticized, not only for featuring pregnant teens, but because some of the cast members have since been arrested, gotten into trouble with drugs and alcohol, and one was featured in a sex tape. But, a study...
- What It's Like To Take Childbirth Classes At Sinai
Ed. Note: We asked one of the Birthplace at Sinai's mothers-to-be to discuss what it's like to take childbirth classes. She'll be blogging periodically on her experiences as a new mother. I?m expecting a baby, but I don?t know what to expect....
- A Safe Haven For Mothers
The Safe Haven law in Maryland, passed in 2002, allows mothers to leave newborn babies at a hospital, fire or police station without being prosecuted and with no questions asked. That means Sinai and Northwest hospitals are safe havens. The purpose of...
Health News
As Ky.'s teen-birth rank rises, mother objects to Casey Co. child-development class's baby shower for five pregnant students
Kentucky's ranking for births to females aged 15 to 19 is going up, and five students at Casey County High School are pregnant. A joint baby shower for them during class time recently sent the wrong message about teenage pregnancy, a mother of a teenager at the school told the Casey County News.
Carmen Foster gained custody of her daughter three years ago, but not before the girl heard her biological mother say she enjoyed being pregnant because of all the attention she received. The biological mother left her and six other children with an abusive ex-boyfriend until Foster gained custody, Abigail Whitehouse reports.
"Some of these kids come from situations we can't even imagine," Foster said. "They need daily positive examples to help them reach their potential. I don't want my daughter thinking that being a pregnant teen will get her tons of positive attention from everyone at school."
Foster, who was a teenage mother, said she has spent years instructing her daughter that she doesn't need approval from boys to have self-confidence. "I want better for our girls," she said. "I believe in love and acceptance and helping in any way that I can, but I also believe in doing so responsibly. This was not a message to be sent out at school."
CCHS Principal Josh Blevins told the newspaper that the baby shower, in a Human and Child Development class, "was a way of saying, here are some things to help get them on their feet. We are just simply addressing the fact that this has happened, and now it's our responsibility to educate these women on how to care for their children." Blevins said the class is an elective, and participation isn't required.
Jackie Allen, who teaches the class, said the students were working through a unit on pregnancy and childbirth unit, and asked if they could throw a surprise baby shower for the five students. "I think it was a positive experience for my students and for the girls they invited," Allen said. "I think that students who are pregnant need all the support they can get. I don't think there was any kind of glorifying teen pregnancy."
Kentucky ranked seventh out of 51 (50 states and the District of Columbia) in 2011 birth rates among females 15-19, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In 2008, the state Kentucky ranked 19th.
Carmen Foster gained custody of her daughter three years ago, but not before the girl heard her biological mother say she enjoyed being pregnant because of all the attention she received. The biological mother left her and six other children with an abusive ex-boyfriend until Foster gained custody, Abigail Whitehouse reports.
"Some of these kids come from situations we can't even imagine," Foster said. "They need daily positive examples to help them reach their potential. I don't want my daughter thinking that being a pregnant teen will get her tons of positive attention from everyone at school."
Foster, who was a teenage mother, said she has spent years instructing her daughter that she doesn't need approval from boys to have self-confidence. "I want better for our girls," she said. "I believe in love and acceptance and helping in any way that I can, but I also believe in doing so responsibly. This was not a message to be sent out at school."
CCHS Principal Josh Blevins told the newspaper that the baby shower, in a Human and Child Development class, "was a way of saying, here are some things to help get them on their feet. We are just simply addressing the fact that this has happened, and now it's our responsibility to educate these women on how to care for their children." Blevins said the class is an elective, and participation isn't required.
Jackie Allen, who teaches the class, said the students were working through a unit on pregnancy and childbirth unit, and asked if they could throw a surprise baby shower for the five students. "I think it was a positive experience for my students and for the girls they invited," Allen said. "I think that students who are pregnant need all the support they can get. I don't think there was any kind of glorifying teen pregnancy."
Kentucky ranked seventh out of 51 (50 states and the District of Columbia) in 2011 birth rates among females 15-19, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In 2008, the state Kentucky ranked 19th.
- Fewer Ky. Teens Are Having Sex, And More Teens Are Using Birth Control When They Do; Teen Birth Rates Are At An All-time Low
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Fewer teens are having sex now than did in the last generation, and of those that do, more are using some form of birth-control, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Kentucky...
- Expectant Mothers Need To Get A Flu Shot
Expectant mothers need to get a flu shot as soon as it is available in their area, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Only the flu shot, not the nasal-spray vaccine, is recommended for pregnant women because it is made with the inactivated...
- Study Says '16 And Pregnant' Reality Tv Show Is Responsible For 5.7% Decline In Births To Teens, But Numbers Still High In Kentucky
The MTV show "16 and Pregnant" has been highly criticized, not only for featuring pregnant teens, but because some of the cast members have since been arrested, gotten into trouble with drugs and alcohol, and one was featured in a sex tape. But, a study...
- What It's Like To Take Childbirth Classes At Sinai
Ed. Note: We asked one of the Birthplace at Sinai's mothers-to-be to discuss what it's like to take childbirth classes. She'll be blogging periodically on her experiences as a new mother. I?m expecting a baby, but I don?t know what to expect....
- A Safe Haven For Mothers
The Safe Haven law in Maryland, passed in 2002, allows mothers to leave newborn babies at a hospital, fire or police station without being prosecuted and with no questions asked. That means Sinai and Northwest hospitals are safe havens. The purpose of...