Hayden Panettiere's Motherly Intentions

Hayden Panettiere might still be a teenager herself, but this young actress seems to have a good head on her shoulders when it comes to teens and pregnancy. The Heroes actress joined teen mom Bristol Palin and others as the Candie's Foundation hosted a town hall meeting on teen pregnancy prevention for National Teen Pregnancy Awareness Day in NYC.

The articulate star told OK! why she was speaking up on this important issue.

"I don’t think it’s something that’s talked about enough and I think that it’s just human nature to not realize the severity of an issue until it happens to you, until it directly impacts your life," she explained to OK!. "And you go, 'I’ll never get pregnant. It will never happen to me. I know it happens but it won’t happen to me. I’ll never get in a car accident, I know it happens, but it won’t happen to me.' Until it happens and then it’s too late.”

PICS FROM THE EVENT:

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Hayden, who isn't necessarily an abstinence only advocate, still had kind words for her fellow speaker, Bristol Palin.

"I think this is all politics aside here," she told OK!. "Different approaches to this topic, different opinions, but still saying the same thing – just to be safe, to be smart, to be educated and it was very brave of her to come up here and for the younger people to see someone their age going through it.” 

The Heroes star was candid about her life plan during the town hall meeting, saying that a family is definitely in her future – somewhere farther along the road.

“I want a family. I want kids. I actually want a lot of kids. Not like ten, like four. And if it’s something that you go, ‘Oh I can’t wait to be a mom,' that’s great, but think about it for your child and go, 'I want to be a mom but I want to be the best mom I can be. And the only way to be the best mom I can be is by waiting until I’m no longer a child and waiting until I can teach them the best morals and raise them the best I can with a good education and a good platform. ' ”

Are we sure she's only 19?

Reporting by Laura Lane