a large cause of teenage pregnancy is a lack of education about sex and pregnancy. the first to be blamed are schools and teachers, but the real starting point should be from within the family. sometimes parents might think talking about sex is inappropriate or that it is automatically encouraging their children to have sex, so they avoid talking about it entirely. this leaves kids with information only from their peers, which often includes pressure to engage in sex acts to meet social standards. parents should realize that in attempting to protect their children from the reality of human sexuality they are causing more harm than good. open discussion about sex in a safe, nonjudgmental environment is essential to helping minors make educated decisions about sex. pediatricians also take it upon themselves to make up for the information that has not been properly communicated to teens, and continually recognize better education as the key to helping reduce teen pregnancy.