Earlier this year, we had some very lively discussion on whether it’s appropriate to mandate the HPV vaccine for school-age girls. Some folks argued that parents don’t know when their kids will become sexually active (let’s all hope it’s older than 12, shall we?), so mandating the vaccine protects girls who many not know that they’re risking cervical cancer with sexual activity.
NYT health blogger Tara Parker-Pope revealed some startling findings (reported by researchers at Columbia University) that make me think that contraception during the middle school years may not be such a bad idea after all:

Middle school kids “date.” Nearly …read more

The month of May is overflowing with national health observances, and here at Lively Women, we’re going to talk about them! After all, how can you be lively if you’re not healthy?
Despite educational efforts in schools and communities around the country, teen pregnancy is still a major health problem in the United States, and it affects both boys and girls. (After all, she doesn’t get pregnant on her own!) Although teen pregnancy rates in America are dropping, the US and the UK still have the highest rates of teen pregnancy in the world, according to a 2002 …read more