On the whole,sex educationat high school was pretty poor.

A dustyscience teacherwould wheel out an even dustier overhead projector, point at two faded diagrams of a man and woman, while the class full of uncomfortable, horny teenagers sniggered at every mention of the words penis, sperm, and vagina before being sent on their way into the world.

Job done.

Well, by the looks of it science lessons are a bit more vivid these days, as a GCSE textbook showing a diagram of the female body with ‘porn star’ pubic hair has caused outrage with some parents.

The photo has been shared on social media, with parents voicing their shock at what they claim is an ‘unhealthy’ idea of what women should look like.

The picture shows a pregnant woman with a ‘Brazilian-style’ landing strip and has outraged parents. Credit: Twitter

One person wrote onMumsnet: “Here we have a school textbook that depicts a woman with pubic hair that looks like it comes straight out of a porn film. It’s also a style that requires significant expenditure and upkeep and generally has to be done by a salon rather than at home. And what message does it send when it is featured in conjunction with pregnancy and giving birth?”

Another parent added: “That is how women look but those men are so used to looking at porn and how that dictates the way a woman should be.”

“It may appear trivial, but it is definitely unhealthy. This is part of the learning that gets drummed into girls about how disgusting they are, how they should be ashamed of themselves, how their discomfort is irrelevant to others.

“There’s no way any kind of hair-removal was getting anywhere near my vulva when I was pregnant! Especially near term. Everything gets extremely sensitive down there, not to mention that the vulval varicose veins popping up are already painful, and don’t need to be ripped about to suit some bizarre societal brainwashing,” wrote a third.

The picture was shared onTwitter, with a ‘disgusted’ user demanding an apology from the book’s publishers.

Not everyone was so disgusted by the diagram however, with some telling parents to ‘get a grip. Credit: PA

The caption said: “Disgusted by@Pearson_UKand@PearsonSchoolsfor publishing this image of a pregnant woman with a Brazilian in a GCSE textbook. Utterly disgraceful. They should formally apologise. SHAME ON YOU.”

However, not everyone agreed with them, claiming it was an overreaction, claiming it is just a drawing, and have told people to ‘get a grip’.

One person wrote: “Omg get a grip. You have little to worry about.”

Another added: “I’d be more concerned if your GCSE educated child actually recognised it as something to be offended by. Get a grip!”

Pearson has responded to complaints and said the image had been replaced during a reprint last year.

A spokesman said: “Clearly, we did not mean to cause offence with the original version and we would be happy to provide the updated version free of charge to any student or teacher who would like a replacement.”

Featured Image Credit: PA