The Significance of Teen Pregnancy

Significance for the Teen

• Teens who become parents suffer more than their peers. Education is one of the first things to suffer. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only one in five pregnant teens will go on to earn a high school diploma or GED. Beyond this, only one in ten teenage mothers will go on to get a two or four-year college degree. This cuts the mother̵7;s earning ability and raises the likelihood that she will raise her child in poverty. Teenage fathers fare only slightly better. Boys who become fathers in high school are 30 percent less likely to graduate than their childless peers. This not only limits the father̵7;s ability to earn, but it also affects the level of support the father can give to the child.

Significance to the Baby

• Babies born to teenage mothers face more risks than babies of mature mothers. The CDC has found that babies born of teen mothers face a higher rate of stillbirth and infant mortality. Some of this may be due to the fact that teenage mothers are less likely to receive early and consistent prenatal care. Once born, these children have fewer resources available to spur growth and development. They are far more likely to be unprepared for kindergarten and have fewer emotional and cognitive skills to handle the world. This places an educational burden on the child than many are unable to overcome. Children of teen parents are more likely to drop out of high school or become teenage parents themselves, continuing a cycle of poverty.

Significance to Society

• The poverty that stems from lack of education results in a family that often needs government help. Seventy-two percent of all teen pregnancies are paid for with Medicare or SCHIP. After birth, this doesn̵7;t change. More than 80 percent of all babies born to teenage mothers are covered by some form of government healthcare. As they grow, these children have a higher rate of incarceration than their peers. This costs millions of dollars to taxpayers and causes an incalculable amount of pain and suffering to victims of their crimes.

What Can Parents Do?

• Talk to the teens in your life, both boys and girls. Discuss choices that may change the rest of the child̵7;s life. Teens can choose not to have sex or choose to use birth control. However, if the teen chooses to use birth control, make sure she knows how to use it correctly and uses it all the time. In addition to pregnancy, discuss risky sexual behavior. According to the National Campaign to Prevent Pregnancy, even though teens account for only about 25 percent of all sexually active adults, they are treated for more than 50 percent of all new STD̵7;s. Help teens see that decisions made today in the heat of the moment may affect happiness and joy for the rest of the teen̵7;s life.