Does it sometimes seem like everyone your age is having sex? Do you know anyone at your school who is pregnant or has a baby? Though teen pregnancy has been on the decline over the past decade, the United States still has the highest teen pregnancy rate of any western industrialized country.

It means that, if you're a girl in this country, you have a 34% chance of becoming pregnant by the time you're 20. And it's not just girls who are facing the consequences. The effects of teen parenthood also follow the young fathers and children throughout their lives.

You hear about teen pregnancy in movies, in the news, at school, and from your parents. MTV even has two hit series about it.

Teen pregnancy can have serious consequences for girls and guys, including decreased chances of finishing school, a rocky financial future, and health risks for both the mother and the child. If you are thinking about having sex, it is important to know that the effects can last a lifetime.

Teen pregnancy has serious consequences -- both physical and emotional -- and if you want to avoid them, you need to have a plan. So start by thinking it through carefully yourself. Though there are a variety of ways to avoid pregnancy, they can be boiled down to two basic strategies:

Practice Abstinence: Not having sex at all is the only 100 percent effective, foolproof method of preventing pregnancy

Use Contraception: If you do choose to have sex, you need to make sure that you use protection every single time.

Whether you choose to have sex or not, it is important to be able to talk about it with your partner. Having direct conversations about sex can be difficult or embarassing, but if you are confident about your facts and able to express openly how you feel it should be easier. So take some time to get informed and to think through what feels right for you. It may be helpful to talk these decisions over with a close friend, parent, doctor, or other trusted adult before you talk to your partner. When you are clear about your own feelings, it will be easier to communicate them to someone else. Not talking about it will not make the issue go away.

Teen pregnancy is 100% preventable. Get the facts at www.stayteen.org, www.plannedparenthood.org, or www.teenwire.com

There are also organizations in many communities devoted to preventing teen pregnancy - schools, independent clubs, non-profit organizations, health centers, and reproductive health organizations. In fact, one of the most important things anyone can do is to make sure parents and teens talk about these issues and know the facts.