The Birds and the Bees Talk: How, When, Where, and Why

<p><strong><u>Show Notes:</u></strong></p> <p>Girls need information about puberty, and sexuality, but most of sex ed should be relationship education that starts in early childhood.</p> <p><strong><u>When</u></strong>: girls are starting puberty earlier and earlier, with the mean age of beginning breast bud development being around 10 in Caucasian girls and 9 in African American girls.  So, education about the changes coming to their bodies and why should begin around 5^th grade before the changes begin.</p> <p><strong><u>Where</u></strong>: Sex ed ideally should be a parent-school partnership.  Aaron Carroll, a professor of pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine, <a href= "https://nl.nytimes.com/f/newsletter/2t5IZHpq0YxfWHjTZwXeZA~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlO9_kP4QZAWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lm55dGltZXMuY29tLzIwMTcvMDgvMjIvdXBzaG90L3NleC1lZHVjYXRpb24tYmFzZWQtb24tYWJzdGluZW5jZS10aGVyZXMtYS1yZWFsLWFic2VuY2Utb2YtZXZpZGVuY2UuaHRtbD9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD0xMTgmZW1jPWVkaXRfcHRnXzIwMjIxMDI2Jmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTc1NjkxJm5sPWplc3NpY2EtZ3Jvc2Utb24tcGFyZW50aW5nJnJlZ2lfaWQ9OTczMzMxMzQmc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMTExMTAmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPTAwMDAyNzMxOGJjNWVmZTllMWE4ODM5Njg3ZWZlZTE2VwNueXRCCmNP5FpZYwAM6SRSGmRydGltam9yZGFubWVkaWFAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA">wrote</a> for The Times in 2017 that studies have shown that “<strong>comprehensive sex education improved knowledge, attitudes, behaviors and outcomes. Abstinence-only programs did not.”</strong> When you narrow the question to <strong>teaching just high schoolers</strong>, both Republicans and Democrats overwhelmingly support a broader sexual education: According to a 2017 <a href= "https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/gEbzvHKPMLNPu8TZUnnrQA~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRlO9_kP0TyaHR0cHM6Ly9qb3VybmFscy5wbG9zLm9yZy9wbG9zb25lL2FydGljbGU_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MTE4JmVtYz1lZGl0X3B0Z18yMDIyMTAyNiZpZD0xMC4xMzcxJTJGam91cm5hbC5wb25lLjAxODAyNTAmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzU2OTEmbmw9amVzc2ljYS1ncm9zZS1vbi1wYXJlbnRpbmcmcmVnaV9pZD05NzMzMzEzNCZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTExMTExMCZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9MDAwMDI3MzE4YmM1ZWZlOWUxYTg4Mzk2ODdlZmVlMTZXA255dEIKY0_kWlljAAzpJFIa