Sex education for children: Why parents should talk to children about sex

Curiosity about sex is a natural step towards learning more about our bodies.

Sex education helps children understand their bodies and helps them feel more positive about their bodies.

Discussing sex is also part of open communication with your child. Early, honest and open communication between parents and children is very important, especially when the child becomes a teenager.

If open communication is normal, children are more likely to talk to their parents about all the other problems they have during adolescence, such as depression, romance, drug and alcohol abuse, and also about sexual issues.

The best strategy is to start the conversation about sex early and continue it as the child grows. This allows parents to avoid a 'big' and not at all comfortable conversation when the child reaches the age of adolescence [when the child is already (mis)informed about sex by friends].

These conversations are the easiest to start when you see a pregnant woman or a baby.

When parents talk to parents about sex, they make sure children get the right information. Parents, experts say, should be the primary source of information for children about sex.

Accurate information about sex protects children from various risks when they grow up, reports the Telegraph.

If parents don't talk to kids about sex, they'll learn it from someone else

Children's exposure to sexual information begins much earlier than children may imagine.

Not talking to children about sex means parents have less control over what and how they learn about sex.

Also, parents should not depend on the education system to teach sex education. Depending on where you live, the subject of sex education can often be avoided.

But if your child has learned about sex in school, then ask them what they have learned and see if they have understood things as they really are. /Telegraph/