Red states have higher occurence of teenage births

Although teenage pregnancy and birth rates are declining nationally, teenage girls still give birth to hundreds of thousands of babies a year. To be precise, they gave birth to 367,678 in 2010 alone, according to the CDC.

Click pic to enlarge

This map shows the birth rate among girls aged 15 to 19 by state. And it clearly shows that more conservative states have higher rates of teenage births.

In states such as Texas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma, 1 out of 20 teenage girls gives birth every year. Using the most recent Census data on teenage populations, Arkansas has the highest rate, at 56 births per 1,000 teenage girls.

It’s no surprise that red states have higher rates. Many of them, including the seven states with the highest rates, do not require schools to teach contraception. The theory is parents want to do that in the home. Clearly, that's not very effective.

Other states that do have sex education require teachers to stress abstinence and advise children to wait until marriage. Again, clearly not very effective.

Studies have concluded time and time again that abstinence-only curricula are not as effective at reducing teen pregnancies and births.

Via Slate.