Dad Shocked at Difference Between Birth Control for 17 Versus 18-Year-Old

Parenting teenagers is sometimes uncomfortable, especially when it is time for "the talk." But one dad got a sexual education lesson of his own when buying birth control for his teenage daughters.

User emma.n04 (Emma Murphy) shared a hilarious clip of her dad on Saturday 2 April to TikTok, in which he passed on his experience of buying birth control for her and her sister.

In the video, Murphy's dad is seen walking up to his daughters—who are sitting on either side of the kitchen table—with a shopping bag.

Laying a piece of paper out on the table, he says: "This is my first receipt for birth control for you two, and apparently, there's a difference in what the doctors think [is] sexual activity from a 17 and an 18-year–old."

He then hands out contraception to each of his daughters. The 17-year-old gets a single pack of the contraceptive pill, while Murphy, at 18, gets a year's worth.

"Here is your birth control," he adds. "Good luck, we wish you well."

"I'm confused," says Murphy, before bursting into laughter at the amount handed to her.

Despite Murphy describing the clip as "one of the most embarrassing moments of [her] life," TikTokers loved her dad's approach to sex education. The video has since received two million likes and 10,500 comments.

Lauren Munson wrote: "emma's doctor said no teenage pregnancy." Victor commented: "Dad pulled out Plan A, B AND C." Wayne joked: "Emma got the party pack."

Just in case that wasn't awkward enough, Murphy's dad asked: "Do you guys want to tell Dad something?"

While her sister jumped in with: "Geez Emma."

The U.S. teen birth rate (births per 1,000 females aged 15 to 19 years) has been declining since 1991, according to the most recent figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Teen birth rates continued to decline from 17.4 per 1,000 females in 2018 to 16.7 per 1,000 females in 2019.

Although reasons for the declines are not totally clear, said the CDC, evidence suggests more teens abstaining from sexual activity, and more teens who are sexually active using birth control than in previous years.

But, Murphy's dad isn't the only one to deliver sex ed on TikTok.

OB-GYN Dr. Jennifer Lincoln has been answering questions about everything from periods to libido on the platform since 2019, while Gen-Z women are using TikTok to debate sex positivity and "hook-up" culture.

A study of 8,000 U.S. teenagers by Rutgers School of Public Health found only half had received sexual education at school that met national standards between 2011 and 2019.

Only 60% were given information about birth control, which is a drop from 1995, when 80% of adolescents received this information.

The type of sex education also varied between genders, with female adolescents more likely to be taught abstinence than males.

However, sexual education is different throughout the U.S., with 21 states not requiring schools to teach the subject at all. For example, Florida's recent "Don't Say Gay" bill, which was signed into law on Monday 28 March, forbids schools from teaching students aged 5 to 9 about sexual orientation.

Other users commented on how important it is for parents to have a discussion about birth control with their children. BitsyBorderline said: "Can we all applaud this super supportive dad!! [and] "More girls need this!!!"

Tattoos&Bruises wrote: "I appreciate this, my father didn't even like getting tampons for me."

Juhlaylaylaylaylaylay shared: "When i was 24ish and got an iud, my dad took me to my appt.

"I got back in the car and he's was like 'so you all pregnant proof now.'"

Newsweek has contacted emma.n04 for comment.