The U.S. Navy is spending the month of January offering family planning seminars - an attempt to deal with its Sailors' 74-percent unplanned pregnancy rate.
According to a Navy news release, the Coalition of Sailors Against Destructive Decisions (CSADD) is holding the seminars, called "Planning a Family During Your Navy Career."
Manpower, Personnel, Training and Education Fleet Master Chief Scott Benning said in the release:
“It’s a holistic view of the whole situation, it is not about trying to tell someone not to have a family.
"At the end of the day, if you want your child to be well taken care of, you've got to prepare. You can't take childbirth lightly. Understand that your family does come first, but that you'll have commitments to taking care of that child, while serving your country and the contract you've signed to serve the Navy. At the end of the day that child has got to be well taken care of."
Also interesting: the baby's father was in the military in 70 percent of enlisted pregnancies.
The Navy's 74-percent unplanned pregnancy rate is much higher than the general population's, according to the Stars and Stripes. The military newspaper reports nearly half of all pregnancies in the United States were classified as unplanned, using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
