“The marketing is another example of the sexualization of our youth and reinforces the “no consequences” mentality.”
I don’t really see it the same way as you. A girl who has refrained from premarital sex is still at risk for HPV exposure when she gets married, unless she marries a guy who’s never had sex before. Even if the prospective husband claims that he’s never had sex, he could be lying, so the girl, through no fault of her own, could be exposed to the virus. A sexually innocent girl could also be exposed through rape. The most important issue for me is whether the vaccine is safe or not. My doctor says that any vaccine, including Gardisil, has risks, but that Gardisil is probably safer than most other vaccines (such as DTP for instance). I’m not sure he’s right about Gardisil being safer than most other vaccines, and this is what I want to find out before I’m comfortable with the idea of my teenage daughter getting this vaccine.
Exactly! Thank you for articulating this so well.