Abstinence

2008-11-05T16:09:31Z

MissK:

[[Image:Beads MFA Boston.jpg|right|thumb|128px|Abstinence beads.]]
The word '''abstinence''' means refraining from indulging in an appetite.

In the 1800s and 1900s, the word "abstinence," used without other explanation, almost always meant abstinence from [[drinking|alcohol]]. The "abstinence movement," for example, led to the establishment of [[prohibition]]. ''[[Teetotaler]]'' meant someone who advocated "total abstinence," rather than just moderation.

Starting in about the 1990s, "abstinence" has been more commonly used in the context of abstinence from sexual intercourse, particularly in the United States in the context of [[sex education]] for adolescents. Thus, for example, we read in a 2002 [[White House]] policy statement:
:..."the goal of Federal policy should be to emphasize abstinence as the only certain way to avoid both unintended pregnancies and STDs."<ref>[http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/02/welfare-book-06.html WORKING TOWARD INDEPENDENCE] Encourage Abstinence and Prevent Teen Pregnancy, White House News and Policies, February 2002</ref>

Studies of the effectiveness of [[abstinence education]] programs have yielded differing conclusions. A 2004 study by the [[conservative]] [[Heritage Foundation]] found that [[virginity pledge]]s significantly reduce premarital sex without putting backsliders at risk.<ref> Teens Who Make Virginity Pledges Have Substantially Improved Life Outcomes
by Robert E. Rector, Kirk A. Johnson, Ph.D., and Jennifer A. Marshall
Center for Data Analysis Report #04-07 [http://www.heritage.org/Research/Abstinence/cda04-07.cfm] </ref> A study funded by the Administration of [[liberal]] President [[Bill Clinton]] through Mathematica Policy Research found that "the programs had no effect on the sexual abstinence of youth."<ref>[http://www.mathematica-mpr.com/abstinencereport.asp Impacts of Four Abstinence Education Programs]</ref> But this study reached this [[liberal]] conclusion by omitting abstinence education during the pivotal high school years and by only following 4 elementary and middle school programs out of 700 total schools that had received funding.<ref>http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=WU07D09</ref>

[[Liberals]] oppose abstinence policies and [[Planned Parenthood]], a powerful liberal organization, profits from teenage sexual activity. Yet the facts are undisputed: abstinent teens never get infected with STDs or become pregnant from having sex.

===Benefits of Abstinence===
* Clear conscience with [[God]] through the absence of [[sin]].

* Peace of mind in your life and future relationships, and marriage.

* More self-respect and more respect for each others and respected by other people.

* Always remember, in a healthy relationship, respect precedes love, and premarital sex only throws away your self respect and your partner's.

* You enter marriage with a more positive outlook and without carrying emotional baggage.

* Personal freedom for both of you and your (future) marriage partner.

* Significantly better chance in having more satisfying and more stable marriage.

* Longer lasting relationship. Premarital sex breaks up more dating couples than any other factor.

* No comparing or being compared sexually in marriage. It also means "being free to enjoy maximum sex, maximum leisure, maximum satisfaction, and maximum liberty, in the way God intended" that is in the covenant of marriage.

* No worries about pregnancy and STDs.

* Less worries about bad reputation.

* It's a fact<ref>http://www.ejhs.org/volume10/AZFchap1.htm</ref> that persons and couples who have premarital sex are more likely to have [[adulterous]] affairs as well.

* Premarital sex often fools a person into marrying someone who really isn't right for them.

* You don't have to put yourself under someone else's mercy not to reject you. It's still a fact, that the more "experienced" guys and girls are generally less desirable and less respected as dating or marriage partners.

* Realize there is a 98 percent chance you will never marry the person you date in high school, so it is always better to keep yourself pure for the right person, that is your future wife or husband. <ref>[http://www.premaritalsex.info/ Sexual Purity]</ref>

== Disadvantages of abstinence ==

*Human beings are driven by three basic needs, to eat, to protect and maintain their living space, and to reproduce, with different partners. By remaining abstinent you cut out a third of your reasons for living, leaving a possible emptiness in your life.

*Rejection of natural impulses and needs can lead to severe emotional turmoil.

*Suppression of necessary desires can lead to feelings of anger regarding sexuality in general, leading to sexual assault and other related crimes.

*If a young person never experiences sex before the person they intend to do it with for the rest of their life, they are left open to being abused and taken advantage of through their naivety.

*Encouraging abstinence can lead to a distinct fear of sex, particularly in young women, destroying their chance of enjoying sex, even with their lifelong partner.

*If you never meet someone you wish to remain with, you'll never engage in physical relations.

*Abstinence means you'll have an incredibly limited sphere of experience, lessening the amount of pleasure you can take from the act.

*Relationships carry emotional baggage regardless of a sexual relationship, meaning even if a person remains virgin until marriage, they will still have issues to deal with.

*All relationships will be put under a strain if one or both participants abstain from sex. It leads to a pressure to marry early, and builds resentment from both parties.

*With modern attitudes, sex is not considered something bad, and therefore won't lead to a "bad reputation" if a person chooses to indulge.

*With so many different methods of conception and sexual health protection available today, there is virtually no risk to sex, if a young person is properly educated.

==See Also==
*[[Previous Breaking News/Abstinence|Articles about '''Abstinence''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
*[[Sexual purity]]

== External links ==
*[http://www.teen-aid.org/ Abstinence is saying yes to the rest of your life]
*[http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=25922 HHS study reveals flaws in sex education]
*[http://www.worldwidegroovecorp.com/abstinence/benefits.html Benefits of abstinence]
*[http://www.house.gov/hensarling/rsc/doc/HC_061306_TitleXvs.AbstinenceFunding.doc Title X vs. Abstinence Funding], Republican Study Committee, April 2006
*[http://www.parentsfortruth.org/ Parents for Truth] is a national campaign of concerned parents who are committed to protecting their children’s health and future through abstinence education.
*[http://www.abstinenceassociation.org/ National Abstinence Education Association] The NAEA exists to serve, support and represent individuals and organizations in the practice of abstinence education.

==Notes and references==
{{reflist}}

[[category:education]]
[[Category:Contraception]]

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Abstinence