February 24, 2012 | 1:12 pm

Zac Efron Earns a Boy Scout Safe Sex Badge

Posted by Ilana Angel

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Zac Efron attends the premiere of the film "Dr. Seuss' The Lorax" in Los Angeles, Ca. Feb. 19. Photo by REUTERS/Phil McCarten

I love Zac Efron.  I think he is super cute and talented, not to mention that he has managed to transition from a child actor to a young man without hitting the land mines of fame at a young age.  This is a good kid.  He is clean cut, a role model for young men, and has abs that make you want to buy a six pack of something and drool over pics of him working out on the beach.

This is a good looking man, but because I watched him grow up through the eyes of my own child, he will always be a kid to me.  He’s that adorable Zac Efron.  He does not drink, smoke, or get into trouble.  He is a clean cut, All American, boy next door, who has some Jewish in his blood.  There is truly nothing to not like about this kid.  He’s golden if you ask me.

It was no surprise to me when at the premier for his latest film “The Lorax”, he accidentally dropped a condom on the red carpet.  Granted it was in front of the world, at a Dr. Suess movie, and kids were all around him, but his clear embarrassment was charming, and though you could tell he was mortified, he had to turn from the cameras and have a quick laugh.

As the mother of a teenage son, I love it that I can now pull the “Zac Efron has safe sex” card.  It will mean nothing to my kid of course, and he will think I’m lame, but who cares?  This great kid is practicing safe sex and that matters to me.  If I see him as a role model to my kid, then his choices make me a great mom.  If he had dropped a crack pipe, not so much.

Rumors are flying that Efron is dating his Lorax costar Taylor Swift, and while I can embrace Zac is sexually active, I cannot wrap my head around the thought of young and innocent Taylor Swift getting it on.  That said, if Taylor is going to have sex, then Zac is a good place to start.  They are beautiful and talented people and I wish them lots of great, safe sex.

How funny is it that the world is so fascinated by these kids and that they may or may not be having sex?  For me it’s not about celebrity gossip as much as it is about the fact that I watched them grow up and if they are now adults, doing adult things, that means my son is close behind. That is enough for me to want to drink during the day and home school my son.

The story here is not that Zac Efron carries around condoms, or that he might be having sex with Taylor Swift.  The real story is that my kid is on his way to adulthood and God willing he will carry around condoms too.  God bless Zac Efron and his safe sex practices.  He’s a good kid so congrats to him and Mazel Tov to whoever he is getting it on with.

As for the day my own son becomes sexually active, I can’t even imagine.  It will happen of course and I will be prepared.  I will buy him condoms, wrap them in High School Musical Zac Efron wrapping paper, with a message that congratulates him on earning his Safe Sex badge from the Boy Scouts.  I will then drink some wine, and keep the faith.