Teenage birth rates have gone up and down over the past 60 years (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teenage_pregnancy). Teenage pregnancy is defined as an underage teenage girl becoming pregnant. The term in everyday speech usually means that a women who has not reached legal adulthood who has become pregnant. Most females in America seem to think that having a child is cool or they want something to call their own. Teaching teenagers about safe sex and the problems associated with pregnancy can go a long way in helping teenage birth rates to continue to drop.
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Teenagers who have babies are more likely to not finish high school and have their future plans messed up. Unfortunately the United States still has the highest rate of teenage pregnancies when compared to other countries of similar status (http://www.preganatteenhelp.org/articles8.html). Babies born to teenage moms have a more likely chance of having a low birth weight and this can lead to all sorts of medical problems later in life. This goes back to education about sex and pregnancy prevention in schools and homes. One of the biggest issues that needs to be addressed in the fight between abstinence only and sexual education is teen pregnancy. Pregnant teenagers face many of the same problems as women in their 20s and 30s. The babies born to these teenage mothers are most likely to have lower education and live in higher rates of poverty, and or other poorer “life outcomes.”(Teenage Pregnancy – Wikipedia). For mothers between 15 and 19 years, age in itself is not a risk factor, but additional risk may be associated with socioeconomic factors. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teenage_pregnancy). There are many groups or oranganizations that help save or at least try to save the many children that are born to these young teenage moms. The teenage birth rate in the United States is the highest in the developed world, and the teenage abortion rate is also high. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teenage_pregnancy). According to information available from the Guttmacher Institue, sex by age 20 is the normal age across the world, and countries with low levels of adolescent pregnancy accept sexual relationships among teenagers and provide comprehensive and balanced information about sexuality. Women exposed to abuse, domestic violence, and family strife childhood are more likely to become pregnant as teenagers, and the risk of becoming pregnant as a teenager increases with the number of adverse childhood experiences (Teenage pregnancy – Wikipedia). The Teenage pregnancy strategy has had mixed success. Although teenage pregnancies have fallen overall, they have not fall consistently in every region, and in some areas they have increased. There are questions about weather the 2010 target of a 50% reduction on 1998 levels can be met (http://en.wiki/Teenage_pregnancy). But to met these rates or statistics most teenagers should focus on the importance of abstinence. Most topics of this subject just point out the main idea and focus on one thing but you have to keep discussing the importance of the subject, because if not then the readers want think much about it and not take it seriously. Supports of abstinence-only movement often favor excluding information about safe sex, which they believe encourages students to become sexually active (Immell, Teen Pregnancy pg.9). Researchers, however indicate that as of yet there is no definite proof that abstinence-only programs impede accelerate, or reduce sexual activity (Immell, Teen Pregnancy pg.10). In the United States the topic of sex education is the subject of much contentious debate. Some schools provide these “abstinence-only” education and virginity pledges are increasingly popular. A team of researchers and educators in California have published a list of “best practices” in the prevention of teen pregnancy, which includes, in addition to the previously mentioned concepts, working to “instill a belief in a successful future,” male involvement in the prevention process, and designing interventions that are culturally relevant (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teenage_pregnancy). Young motherhood in an industrialized country can affect employment and social class. Less than one third of teenage mothers receive any form of child support, vastly increasing the likelihood of turning to the government for assistance. Teenage motherhood may actually make economic sense for poorer young women, some researchers suggest (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teeenage_pregnancy). Most teenage girls think that having a baby is okay as long as they are taken care of and living in the right environment, but little do they know the after math or the impact of birth of the child. Early motherhood can affect the psychosocial development of the infant. One study suggested that adolescent mothers are less likely to stimulate their infant through affectionate behaviors such as touch, smiling, and verbal communication, or to be sensitive and accepting toward his or her needs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teenage_pregnancy). As many of us know being a teen mother is not easy and does not look like it will be any time soon but we have to keep informing our teens on the important of abstinence. The question still remains will the rates of teenage pregnancies continue to rise or will it slowly descend? The only answer to this question is to keep supporting your near schools and continue to inform your children about abstinence only and the risks of having a child.
Work Cited
- worth, richard. Single parnet families. New York: miami herald publishing company, 1992. Print.
- immell, myra h. San Diego: greenhaven press, 2001. Print
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