Preview

Dr. Meeker's Your Children At Risk

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1455 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Dr. Meeker's Your Children At Risk
Summary
The following review is based on the book Your kids at risk: How teen sex threatens our sons and daughters (2007). The book is a comprehensive text regarding the effects of sexual promiscuity amongst today’s teens, the signs in which to look for, and ways in which to prevent the potentially detrimental outcomes. The book discusses a variety of issues threatening our teens today in the form of STDs (sexually transmitted diseases) and what Dr. Meeker describes as “emotional STDs”, which she defines as depression, ultimately resulting from the complications associated with teen sex. Dr. Meeker offers a great amount of detailed information regarding STDs, both the curable as well as the incurable that are plaguing many teens todays. Additionally, she provides a range of information, from birth control to media influence to emotional health and offers her point of view of not only a pediatrician’s perspective, but as a mother
…show more content…
Dr. Meeker perfectly illustrates the various dilemmas and turmoil experienced by teens today based on patient stories as well as her own experiences throughout her medical career. Moreover, her inclusion of personal oversights early in her career demonstrates a vulnerability that gives the book not only a personal feel, but allows the reader to better relate and connect with the author. The book is cleverly divided into three sections, the first regarding the various STDs plaguing those partaking in sexual promiscuity and often “unsafe sex”, the second, titled “the forces at work”, discusses just that, the influences, such as media as well as the many misconceptions surrounding, but not limited to birth control and what she describes as “high-risk sex”, to name a few. The last and final section is

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Personally, I cannot offer any constructive criticism of Dr. Meeker's work of, "Your Kids at Risk." The content is meticulous regarding the content and this intent should be praised. Dr. Meeker should be thanked for her time and resources to such an outstanding compilation of information which can transcend to other cultures; thereby, building bridges to protect children today and in the future.…

    • 333 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    According to Julie Ann author of “Talking About Teen Pregnancy” written August 10, 2007 reported an estimated 3 million new cases of teen STDs each year. Teenagers are so quick to lay down and have sex without thinking of the problems that come alone with it. Teens do not realize that every time they lay down and have sex they increase their chances of getting an STD. Gracie Hsu the author of “The Debate over STD Prevention Strategy” reported an estimated 100,000 to 150,000 women become infertile each year as a result of an STD. Without the proper knowledge teens will never know how serious this is.…

    • 869 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    HDFS 240 paper

    • 811 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Let’s Talk About Sex (2009) is a documentary film directed by James Houston that describes how American attitudes toward teenage sexuality affect teenagers in today’s society. Sex has become a media means and marketing tool to influence people’s buying decisions. The misleading messages about sex in today’s media have confused teenagers with incorrect information and thus led to a sky-high numbers of teenage unintended pregnancy and transmission of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), costing the nation more than 9 billion dollars each year. Yet, it seems to be apparent that educational institutions like schools and churches have not been successful in teaching sex education. The vicious cycle continues to worsen and has resulted in various societal issues. The director has interviewed some families in American and in Netherland, depicting a strong contrast in attitudes toward sexuality among the families. The Netherlanders holds a much more open attitude to human sexuality. The film engages the audience to think about this “forbidden” topic and challenges them to make a difference in protecting the adolescents.…

    • 811 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Chlamydia

    • 1222 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Many teens today are more prone to catching a sexually transmitted disease by being sexually active. From my judgment I see in today’s generation, most teens think by simply doing it and losing their virginity, they’re accepted in society’s standard. Teens think it’s so cool or in other cases some may even think they finally reached their ‘manhood’, when in reality, it’s nothing like that. Having sexual intercourse isn’t and shouldn’t be based on popularity, it is something that should be taken seriously. There are a lot of risk when deciding to have intercourse with someone else, especially if you’re not being careful. Teens are not aware that there will be consequences such as getting pregnant and catching a sexually transmitted disease (STD). When it comes to sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), the United States offers woefully inadequate education says Familyfirstaid (2004). The most common mistake a teen can make is thinking that their body is immune to STD’s. Chlamydia is a silent but deadly STD if not treated well and is one of the common one that teens can get and not even know, according to Chlamydia Quick Cure.…

    • 1222 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Academic Literacy - paper

    • 3948 Words
    • 16 Pages

    The format of this source was in the style of a newspaper article which had clear bold headlines, but not a large enough size to attract your attention although the headlines did highlight the purpose of the article. The font was used continuously throughout the article and kept at a similar size. The audience was mainly aimed towards the public, with an informal tone used as no jargon was used and also no terminology used in order to make it harder to understand, therefore simpler language was used, which best fit the tone used with the audience it was aimed at. With the argument of the author being about the cuts being made in the sexual health services such as Family Planning (FPA) and Brook, the argument clearly stresses the concern at the higher statistics of young people with catching Sexual Transmitted Infections and pregnancy. The Article only contained one image which promoted contraception, showing what kind of services are offered in both Brook and FPA. The language used was in a sense of concern and anxiety with words like “vulnerable” (Williams, 2012) being used, which suggests that concern is being raised. With the lack of statistics and facts used I was not as convinced as I could have been , having said that the articles use of language made it easier to understand so the language used best fit the audience intended. The argument was convincing as it did make me realize the importance of the sexual health services, but as said before, if facts and statistics were included the argument would have been enhanced into an excellent argument.…

    • 3948 Words
    • 16 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Each of us deserves medically accurate and thorough information in order to make informed decisions about our health. Teenagers who are exposed solely to abstinence-only sexual education programs are not experiencing this right to information. Abstinence-only sexual education programs preach abstaining from sex until marriage, often omitting conversations about other significant topics of sexual health – such as contraception, STIs, etc. Although practicing abstinence is the only sure way to avoid STIs and unwanted pregnancy, it is not realistic to expect all adolescents to remain abstinent until marriage. Research suggests that implementing comprehensive sexual education programs – those that include information on an array of sexual health…

    • 606 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Critical Thinking and Sex

    • 1004 Words
    • 5 Pages

    When it comes to sexual decisions, an individual must think about all the consequences. If they do to wish to get pregnant, they need to think about some form of birth control. If they do not wish to catch a sexually transmitted disease, they must think about using protection. As with anything that we do in life, we should think long and hard about having sex when we are not married. As fun as it is and as pleasurable as it may be, unwanted things can happen. In today’s times, teens seem to be less active when it comes to sex than they were back in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s.…

    • 1004 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the average teenager engages in sexual intercourse by the age of seventeen, but do not marry until the mid-twenties (citation). This means that young adults are at an increased risk for unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections for nearly ten years or longer. The numbers of students engaging in sexual activity of ages thirteen to twenty-four continues to grow each year, as does the number of unplanned pregnancies and HIV infections due to not being fully educated about the risks. Today, the duty of educating students and teenagers about sexual intercourse and the risks involved is left to the government and public school system. Abstinence education programs in public…

    • 637 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Teens did not know their own bodies. There were little factual resources that teenagers can depend. Few choices left for them, teenagers were guided along high risk actions. Abstinence was the approved option by parents, as it teaches teens to not be sexually active but not on protection or STDS. Another path is exploration on their own means. Exploration was dangerous, because teenagers were unaware of the consequences. Both options plunged teens’ health into a abyss. Then around 1980s, media started to reach towards the topic of sexual activity in teenagers. Many teen movies brushed against the topic about sexual activity and gave more positive responses than usual. Now, there is a rapid increase in sexual activity amongst teens. Due to this rise of sexually active teens, sexual health programs in high schools need to be updated to accommodate this change. High schools need to avoid only abstinence learning and implemented new programs for…

    • 549 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Young people in the United States may fail to protect themselves during sexual intercourse if they lack 1.) Accurate information regarding sexuality and contraception and/or 2.) Access to health care. Teens ' access to care may be limited by cost, time constraints, lack of transportation, inflexible clinic operating hours, fear that confidentiality will be breached, and apprehension about discussing personal health problems. School-based health centers (SBHCs) can deliver accessible, confidential, and comprehensive medical and mental health care specifically designed for and at little cost to teens.…

    • 1998 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Adolescence is a time of tremendous growth and potential, but it is also a time of considerable risk. Most people would argue that being an adolescent today is a different experience from what it was even a few decades ago. Both the perceptions of this change and the change itself attest to the powerful influence of social contexts on adolescent development. Many of the thirty-four million adolescents in the United States are confronting pressures to use alcohol, cigarettes, or other drugs and to initiate sexual relationships at earlier ages. This makes themselves at high risk for intentional and unintentional injuries, unintended pregnancies, and infection from sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Many experience a wide range of painful and debilitating mental health problems as well.…

    • 1050 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    An End to Ignorance

    • 2748 Words
    • 11 Pages

    The United States has the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases and teen pregnancy of any developed country. Each year, unprotected sex results in almost four million teenagers contracting an STD. The HIV/AIDS epidemic is also a serious health concern for young people. Of the 40,000 new HIV infections in the US every year, about 20,000 occur in people under the age of 25, unprotected sex being to blame. (1) The National Abortion Rights Advocacy League says, “By denying teens the full range of information regarding human sexuality, abstinence-only education fails to provide young people with the information they need to protect their health and well-being.” (2) Surveys done by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that “students who have sex education know more and feel better prepared to handle different situations and decisions than those who have not.” (3) If the abstinence-only approach continues, it is expected have serious consequences by denying young people access to the information they need to protect themselves. These…

    • 2748 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Developmental Paper

    • 2315 Words
    • 10 Pages

    According to studies there has been an increase of unprotected intercourse in adolescents that leads to sexually transmitted diseases, psychological disorders, and the use of substance abuse (Jemmott, Fong, G. T. (2005)). Adolescents typically go to the use of drugs to throw away the feelings they encounter in everyday situations. Studies also show that most adolescents that involve their selves in intercourse at an early age will have a larger number of sexual partners, and use condoms less often when engaged in intercourse.…

    • 2315 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Sti's

    • 957 Words
    • 4 Pages

    65 million people are living with an incurable STI (Sexually Transmitted Infection) in the United States. This is an extremely high number which includes many different types and forms of diseases. Some are curable and others are not. So this is a huge problem in the USA and all over the world that I had no idea about or put much thought into. It is incredible the outstanding number of people with STI’s and the growing rate. This truly is in every sense of the word a pandemic as referred to in the book. I will discuss a few things from this chapter about STI’s that I found most interesting besides the STI’s themselves that almost made me hurl due to some of the graphic pictures. Some issues that are related and need to be learned include the lack of symptoms, lack of accurate information, unhealthy sexual emotions and attitudes, poor sexual communication, and substance abuse and its relation to STI’s.…

    • 957 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    References: Anderson, Kirby (2005) Comprehensive Sex Education Does Not Work. At Issue: Sex Education. Greenhaven Press…

    • 1311 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays