Nearly one million teenagers become pregnant and give birth each year in the United States. Many babies born to teenage mothers often suffer from low birth weight and other related health problems. Children of teen parents often receive inadequate care because teens are rarely able to provide the care newborns need for normal development (“In Issue: Teen Pregnancy”). Yet such problems can be avoided without having to provide contraceptives, such as birth control, in schools. Schools should not provide adolescents with access to contraceptives because they should focus on abstinence education. Schools should not be responsible for the actions of teenagers, and contraceptives can be dangerous for still-developing girls. While contraception is a possible solution to reducing teen pregnancies, abstinence, the practice of abstaining from having sex, is the most effective at preventing pregnancy. and sexually transmitted diseases. Education about the risks of such behaviors must be involved to reduce the number of teenage pregnancies. Abstinence programs offer a balanced approach, teaching teens how to build and maintain healthy relationships, increase self-esteem, and set relevant boundaries to achieve future goals. Abstinence education shares the reality of STDs and the best way to prevent them. Information about contraception may be provided, but always within the limits of abstinence as the healthiest choice (“Abstinence works”). Hearing stories of other teen mothers and their struggles can also remind other teens to wait until they are responsible enough to handle possible consequences. Schools should focus on abstinence education because, in 1991, the Sexuality Information and Educati...... middle of document ......will result in a dangerous ectopic pregnancy ("If Plan B goes OTC , common sense will suffer"). For example, an ectopic pregnancy is an abnormal pregnancy that occurs outside the uterus. In this type of pregnancy the baby cannot survive and often does not develop at all. It is often caused by a condition that blocks or slows the movement of the fertilized egg through the fallopian tubes to the uterus. Up to 50 percent of women who have had an ectopic pregnancy have had swelling of the fallopian tubes or pelvic inflammatory disease (Magill). Using contraceptives is a big responsibility for teenagers. They have to remember to use it, when to use it, and how to use it. And then there is still the possibility of error. Contraceptives can be used improperly, but they don't always work, or they can leak. Therefore, contraceptives can be dangerous for high school adolescents who are still developing.