VOA慢速英语-Health Report - Teenagers and Pregnancy

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.
　
A 16-year-old mother receives care for her baby at a mobile health clinic in Garland, Texas, in a 2006 photo

More than seven hundred thousand teenagers a year get pregnant in the United States. The teen pregnancy¹ rate has fallen thirty-eight percent since the early nineteen nineties. And the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy says the teen birth rate has fallen by almost as much. Six out of ten pregnant teenagers in two thousand six gave birth.

The nonprofit campaign says these changes have been driven by decreases in sexual activity and increases in contraceptive use. But it points to recent findings that reductions in teen sex and increases in contraceptive use have leveled off. And the teen birth rate is rising for the first time in fifteen years.

Last week, many Americans talked about the news that the seventeen-year-old daughter of Sarah Palin is pregnant and will get married. Sarah Palin is the governor of Alaska and the Republican nominee² for vice³ president. Campaign officials said the family released a statement because of claims on the Internet that the candidate's baby son was really her daughter's baby.

But there have been other reasons why teen pregnancy has been more of a subject of national discussion lately.

The movie "Juno" came out last December. A teenager gets pregnant and decides to have the baby and give it up for adoption⁴. This comedy about a serious subject won an Academy Award.

And this past June, Jamie Lynn Spears gave birth. The TV star and sister of Britney Spears was sixteen when she got pregnant. Many parents of her young fans were not happy to have to discuss it.

Eight out of ten pregnancies⁵ in teenagers are unplanned, compared to half of all pregnancies nationally.

A two thousand one UNICEF report on teenage births in rich nations showed that the United States had the highest rate. But, as a New York Times columnist⁶ just noted⁷, the United States did not have the highest rate of sexually active teens. A few others had higher rates. Denmark had the highest. Yet its teen birth and teen abortion⁸ rates were much lower than America's.

Part of the debate over what to do about teen pregnancy is how to deal with sex education. Some people argue for an expansion of "abstinence-only" programs. These center on the message that young people should not have sex until marriage. Other people argue that while this may be a good message to teach, it should not be the only one taught in schools.

And that's the VOA Special English Health Report, written by Caty Weaver⁹. I'm Steve Ember.

1 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

2 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

3 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

4 adoption   

n.采用，采纳，通过；收养

参考例句：

• An adoption agency had sent the boys to two different families.一个收养机构把他们送给两个不同的家庭。
• The adoption of this policy would relieve them of a tremendous burden.采取这一政策会给他们解除一个巨大的负担。

5 pregnancies   

怀孕，妊娠( pregnancy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Since the wartime population needed replenishment, pregnancies were a good sign. 最后一桩倒不失为好现象，战时人口正该补充。
• She's had three pregnancies in four years. 她在四年中怀孕叁次。

6 columnist   

n.专栏作家

参考例句：

• The host was interviewing a local columnist.节目主持人正在同一位当地的专栏作家交谈。
• She's a columnist for USA Today.她是《今日美国报》的专栏作家。

7 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

8 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

9 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。