HPV Vaccine

I was over at Doctor David's Blog and I came across THIS entry. No one likes to talk about STD's and I understand. It's embarrassing and taboo to do so. Who wants to talk about a disease that was transmitted during the acts of sex? But HPV is something people need to talk about because it's easy to transmit and it causes cervical cancer.

Most people that have HPV don't even know it. I've already decided that when Arwen and Annabel are older I'd like them to get the shot. It's not because I'm encouraging them to have sex or because I'm fine with them being sexually active. Rather it's due to knowing my children may or may not listen to me and are going to make their own choices. I don't know if they will choose to have sex but I can at least know if they do make that decision they will be protected somewhat from HPV. How could I not allow them to have the vaccine knowing it could potentially save their lives in the future?

The debate on this conjures up images of the birds and bees talk with my Dad. Back then it wasn't the vaccine parents had to decide to encourage or dismiss, it was condoms. I remember my Dad telling me to be responsible and that if I was going to be sexually active to use protection. What's funny is this talk helped me make the decision not to engage in sexual activity. There was no way I was going to talk to my Dad about sex again, much less ask about condoms, and could you imagine if I'd gotten pregnant?!?

HPV is a nasty creature. It's transmitted even if a couple uses condoms because it's passed through genital contact. How scary is that? Scary enough that I'm going to educate my children and give them the information so they can make an informed decision.