Most parents squirm at the idea of talking to their kids about sex for a simple reason: We aren?t that comfortable talking about sex, period.
There seems to be a general consensus that kids do need to be taught about sex. A recent survey published in the Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality found that 87 percent of parents believe sex education is important enough that it should be taught in schools. In the survey, parents rated themselves, doctors and nurses, and the school system as the most competent sources of sex ed.
This is great news.
This post is part of The Canada Project. You can find out more by clicking the image above.
But less great is the age at which parents think that education should happen. In that survey, parents agreed it should start by middle school, when kids are 11 to 14 years old. Similarly, in a recent survey commissioned by Rogers Media, when parents were asked ?At what age should you start talking to your kids about sex"? the average answer was 11. Almost a quarter said 12, and 9 percent said 13. So the problem as I see it?and as a sex educator and author, I think about this stuff a lot?isn?t convincing parents they should talk to their kids about sex. It?s convincing them that they need to start much earlier.
Let me give it a try.
For one thing, if you start talking to your kids about sexuality when they?re still small, it?ll be way easier when you eventually have to talk to them about actually having sex.  This is partly because you?re g...