High school is a time for teens to discover themselves, explore their future, meet new people, try new activities, and become more independent. With new opportunities come peer pressure and difficult decisions. Most decisions are simple, like choosing to go shopping with friends instead of studying for a math test or skipping soccer practice to go out with a crush. The consequences of simple professional or friendly decisions are minor. The teenager may get a low grade on the math test and have to do extra laps in practice the next day, but his life will not be significantly changed. Some decisions, however, are more complicated. In high school, teenagers start dating and having physical contact like kissing. As relationships become more serious, the pressure to perform other sexual acts increases. In order to make the best choice regarding an important decision, one needs information and knowledge about the subject, the risks, the consequences and the options available. Without proper information about sexual intercourse and the risks associated with such acts, adolescents cannot be expected to make the best decision when it comes to committing sexual acts. Comprehensive sex education should be taught in U.S. high schools to increase adolescents' knowledge of the risks of sexual intercourse and the preventive measures available to reduce risks so that adolescents can make informed decisions. Risks associated with performing sexual acts include pregnancy. , sexually transmitted diseases and sexually transmitted infections. When the risks become reality, the life of the adolescent concerned changes negatively. Teenage pregnancies inhibit women's education since "only about half (51%) of them receive...... middle of paper...... do not support teaching or provision of contraceptives to adolescent girls. In the article “Distributing Condoms in Schools Encourages Teen Sex,” John D. Hartigan writes, “…providing condoms to adolescents inevitably produces a marked increase in their sexual activity” (11). Regardless of the availability of condoms and other forms of contraceptives, adolescents will still have sex. Brigid McKeon's article "Effective Sex Education" for Advocates for Youth states that information, such as contraceptive use and availability, taught in "comprehensive sex education...[does] not increase rates of sexual initiation” (12). The only difference between making contraceptives easily accessible to adolescents and preventing adolescents from accessing contraceptives is the number of adolescents who are not protected against pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases..