According to World Health Organization Report, more than 11% of all births worldwide are to the girls aged 15-19 Years and Most of the births are in Under Developed & Developing Countries. At Present, there are 44 Births Per 1000 to Teenage Girls per year.
Teenage Pregnancy refers to a Girl under 19 Years who became pregnant. Do you think there will be health issues in Teenage Pregnant Girls? Yes, there are many health issues a Teen Pregnant has to face.
Here are 19 Reasons why Teenage Pregnancy is a Problem:
1. Premature Birth
2. Maternal Anemia
3. Sexually Transmitted Diseases
4. Low Birth Weight Baby
5. Poor Nutrition
6. Stress
7. Postpartum Depression
8. High Blood Pressure
9. High Death Rate
10. Miscarriage
11. Family Problem
12. Abortion
13. Single Parenthood
14. Less Prenatal Care
15. Poor Parenting
16. Neglect of Baby
17. Delayed Education
18. Economic Consequences
19. Negative Social Effect
Premature Birth
Mothers having their baby prematurely are often frightened and nervous. Premature new-borns could face an increased risk of many complications.
Women who gave birth during their teenage years have an increased risk of preterm and very preterm delivery. The unfortunate pregnancy outcome is possibly related to biological immaturity. The examples of the major concerns in the cases of premature labor are the underdeveloped lung of the new-born, becoming a low-birth-weight child, which are an especially higher risk when they are having a second child.
Furthermore, teenagers who become pregnant at an early age cannot pursue their higher education, lack of financial support, increase the risk of destitution. They will definitely need to fulfill their extra responsibility. Strategies to tackle these issues associated with a pregnancy of teenage involve concurrent interventions such as skill building, education, clinical and social support for teenage mothers and contraception services for young people and pregnant teenagers.
Maternal Anemia
Teenage mothers take the high risk of anemia. This causes fatigue, anorexia, dizziness, and abortion in teenage mothers. Moreover, anemia also makes newborns handicap, death and thalassemia. This symptom is the genetic disorder that can't prevent. The important element reducing the chance of being thalassemia is iron. The pregnant who always take iron while pregnancy can prevent anemia.
So, if you found the teenage moms, you should advise them to take iron regularly. However, it is better to suggest them to have a baby when they ready.
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
The health issue is one of the most important issues all over the world. In deep, health issue can be classified into many different types. Cancer, Diabetes or even Heart Disease are one of the crucial issues in terms of health problems. Surprisingly, there is another health issue that we have been facing for a long time which is teenage pregnancy. This issue is kind of an ongoing issue that needs to be seriously solved as soon as possible.
It can cause many problems such as Premature Birth, Maternal Anemia or even Sexually Transmitted Diseases. We are going to look deeper with Sexually Transmitted Diseases, which is one the most crucial.
Sexually Transmitted Diseases normally mean diseases that can be dispatched through having sex. HIV and AIDS are what everyone is concerned about when mentioning about diseases from having sex. Hill stands for human immunodeficiency Virus, and it is a virus that attacks and eradicates the immune system, which is the body's defense against any illness. The immune system would get influenced by an attack, and people who are living with HIV and do not receive any treatment will get suffered in the future because it will get harder and harder to fight with this virus. Moving on to AIDS, AIDS is a set of symptoms caused by HIV. When the immune system is too weak to fight off infection, it will be considered as AIDS. This is the last stage of HIV and if those people who have AIDS are not treated rightly, they will be dead soon.
Teenage pregnancy can lead to such terrible mentioned problems, and it seems very hard to prevent sex because sex is one of the actions of a human being. Nevertheless, there is still a light at the end of the tunnel. We can prevent this by using condoms during sex. Using condoms is the best way to avoid HIV and any other sexually transmitted infections. The lesson of such preventions should be known and learnt by the teenage as well.
Low Birth Weight Baby
There are several factors, which could potentially cause low birth weight babies in younger maternal age. The primary factor is "Premature Birth". Because of this factor, these babies spend less time in their mother's uterus to grow and gain weight. The second factor is "Intrauterine Growth Restriction" which is caused by the placenta and mothers' health. Additionally, it cannot be denied that “immaturity of The Female Reproductive System" is the root cause of the issues which are mentioned earlier, and the third possible cause is “The Inadequate Supply" of nutrients to the human fetus and its environment. The low birth-weight infants have higher risks of facing subnormal growth, illnesses and neurodevelopmental problems. As a consequence, it would be better if you 'WAIT UNTIL YOU ARE READY’!!! By following this idea, you will not only have a healthier baby but you will also get a happier family as well.
Poor Nutrition
Teens do not understand the importance of nutrition during pregnancy and the repercussions of leading an unhealthy lifestyle. Due to the absence of required nutritional needs, the teenage mother and her baby may undergo several complications of teen pregnancy, such as low birth weight, preterm delivery and anaemia in mother.
Stress
Stress is a matter of emotion or feeling that occurs when faced with various problems and makes feel uncomfortable. That can change the behavioural expression of the person. For example, some people may have anorexia, or some may feel hungry at the same time and cause of more food consumption. Some have difficulty sleeping or sleeping for several consecutive nights. Less work efficiency, like to be alone. Often, people are exposed to stressful behaviour such as smoking, drug addiction, drinking, delusions, do somethings like their group. It’s not a surprise that lots of people use alcohol to escape. But this isn't about a glass of wine, a bottle of beer or a drink with one of those smile-inducing hot pink umbrellas in them. This is about excessive, prolonged drinking. More than one or two drinks a day. This is the type of drinking that you probably hide from friends. It may be the type of drinking that begins long before happy hour does and goes on for later. Or it may just be one drink beyond that early, feel-good buzz, alcohol can dull sex. The current social situation can be said men who are sexually attracted are more likely to be sexually assaulted.
Postpartum Depression
According to unplanned pregnancy, the teenage mother suddenly has an important role to take care of her new-born, and because it’s happen unintentionally, there are many problems for a teenage mother to deal with, in addition of hormonal changes. So, guess what’s going to happen. Of course, the depression, following by the anxiety and suffering that need a psychosocial treatment. So, it's better to WAIT UNTIL YOU ARE READY! You will have a better life, a better family that brings you a happiness.
High Blood Pressure
High teenage pregnancy rates are linked to high levels of social exclusion, and poor knowledge of contraception. Many teenage pregnancies are unplanned and being a teenage parent can lead to an increase in relative poverty, unemployment, poorer educational achievements and poor health of the child born. Hypertension is one of the problems that teenage pregnancy might have, the rate occurs in approximately 15-20 % of pregnancies and is associated with significant maternal and fetal morbidity. Most importantly, it results in preterm delivery and is associated with other conditions in the spectrum of placental ischemic disease such as intrauterine growth retardation and placental abruption. Chronic hypertension increases the risk for gestational hypertension and preeclampsia. Hypertension during pregnancy is also associated with increased future cardiovascular risk in the mother and her offspring. Pregnant teens have a higher risk of getting high blood pressure ~called pregnancy-induced hypertension -than pregnant women in their 205 or 305. They also have a higher risk of preeclampsia. This is a dangerous medical condition that combines high blood pressure with excess protein in the urine, swelling of a mother's hands and face organ damage. That is the reason why teenage pregnancy is an important public health issue furthermore the integrated action across several sectors is needed to help young women avoid unwanted pregnancy and to deal with the consequences of pregnancy whether it is wanted or not.
High Death Rate
The children of teen mothers are more likely to be born prematurely, low birthweight or get inadequate prenatal care and inadequate nutrition which lead to perinatal death, blindness, deafness, respiratory problems, mental retardation, mental problems. Most often teen pregnancies don't know how to take care of their children because they are still young and less well-educated. Moreover, some of the teen pregnancies smoke and drink alcohol that affect to their fetus. Sometimes they get pregnant by mistake so they try to get an abortion but they failed and have complications of pregnancy and delivery.
Miscarriage
Age: Older women are more likely to conceive a baby with a chromosomal abnormality and to miscarry as a result.
A history of miscarriages: Women who have had two or more miscarriages in a row are more likely than other women to miscarry again.
Chronic diseases or disorders Poorly controlled diabetes and certain inherited blood clotting disorders, auto immune disorder and hormonal disorders are some of the conditions that could increase the risk of miscarriage.
Uterine or cervical problems: Having certain congenital uterine abnormalities, severe uterine adhesions or a weak or abnormally short cervix (known as cervical insufficiency) up the odds for a miscarriage.
A history of birth defects or genetic problems: If you, your partner, or family members have a genetic abnormality, have had one identified in a previous pregnancy, or have given birth to a child with a birth defect, you're at higher risk for miscarriage.
Infections: if you have listeria, mumps, rubella, measles, cytomegalovirus, parvovirus, gonorrhoea, Hill, and certain other infections.
Smoking, drinking, and using drugs: Not only Smoking, drinking alcohol, and using drugs like cocaine and MDMA (ecstasy) but also high levels of caffeine consumption increased the risk of miscarriage.
Medications: Some medications have been linked to increased risk of miscarriage including nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen and aspirin.
Environmental toxins: Environmental factors like formaldehyde, benzene, and ethylene oxide; and large doses of radiation or anaesthetic gases.
Paternal factors: Little is known about how the father’s condition contributes to a couple ‘s risk for miscarriage, though the risk does rise with the father's age. Besides, which sperm could be damaged by environmental toxins but still manage to fertilize an egg. This is a greater risk of miscarriage.
Family Problem
Teenage pregnancy has become one of the most serious issues in our society. The impact, especially, on the family can be seen from the divorce statistic of the teenage marriages. Adult couples, in contrast, usually live together longer and take good care of their children. According to the limited responsibility of people in this age, some young parents choose to put their children up for adoption or left them with their relatives. Meanwhile, the essentials of the children development are to live with and receive love from their real parent.
Abortion
A pregnancy that occurs in the wrong place at the wrong time can have a lifelong impact on a teenage girl's life. There are approximately 1 million teenagers become pregnant each year. Of those, 78% are unintended. Of all the teenage women that become pregnant, 35% choose to have an abortion rather than bear a child. Why they have to do this? Most of the feeling I can imagine for them are fear and shame, so they cannot tell anyone especially their parents who can guide her to solve this problem. Along with the society acceptance, there is still a lack of acceptance for teenage pregnancies. Girls who decide to keep their babies become a subject of constant gossip and pity. Since they have no one to talk with, it must feel like living under the pressure. Then lots of questions will come up to their head such as will I have the ability to take additional responsibility? Do I have adequate money to raising the child? lf the family know will they support to take care of the child? .It is all about endless questions with no answers, then it may end up with ’will I keep the baby?’ In most countries, abortion is illegal, it increases the risk of girls opting for the procedure through illegal means. This has resulted in self-harm, unsafe abortions. The girls might seek for an abortion pills or meds that use vaginally to remove the baby which easily to find on the internet. Many of them died as a result of these unsafe abortion methods, those who survive have an emotional and mental impact. The girl may undergo severe stress that may leave her displaced for the rest of her life. Now, it is important to avoid the unsafe abortions by educate the teenagers about safe sex and remind them to wait until you are ready.
Single Parenthood
Teenage mother gets pregnant because of unplanned sexual relationship such as failure to protect herself from getting pregnant. Eventually creates another problem after the baby is born, [especially in parenting roles and responsibilities]
Conflict arises when parents disagree about the child's welfare by the neglecting parental responsibilities. In some case, when a man is jobless and shows no interest in helping to provide for the child and mother’s nourishment which is a factor that may lead to separation when such neglect is left unresolved.
Another is the readiness of the wife to take on the role of being a single parent who is able to raise her child alone.
Less Prenatal Care
Teenage mothers are not fully capable of taking responsibilities and taking care of themselves, let alone taking care of their soon-to-be-born babies. Therefore, we need to help them be aware of the importance of prenatal care and what not to be done during pregnancy these can help them to maintain their safety and prevent malnutrition in the babies which can cause birth defects and many other consequences.
Poor Parenting
Have you ever thought of having another life in your day for 24/7 and how could you handle it? Thinking about studying, homework, reports, projects, tests, and others, can make you feel frustrated. In case, you also have to take care of your baby as well, what would it be? You might have thought about dropping from the school and taking care of your baby instead, how about your diplomas for getting into the higher education? You might not realize about the degrees, what if you apply for a job and they require your degrees, then what would you do? Granted that you did not get the job, how could you get the income from? In case, you could not find the way out for getting the income, then you might have thought about stealing, snatching, or something illegal for the money, spending for your baby. According to the UK's Department for Education in 2011 found that children who are exposed to bad parenting are two times more likely to misbehave. Inconsistent disciplinary approaches, poor supervision and physical punishment are poor parenting attributes that can negatively affect children, regardless of their ethnicity and socioeconomic status. Thus, the children from the poor parenting can grow up and be another social issue in the future for antisocial Behaviour, poor Resilience, depression or aggression. in case, those children grew up and having unready-babies, this will turn to the poor-parenting cycle as above and continuing worse. Having a baby with poor parenting can be one of the social and health issues because you have to be ready and prepared for another life in your day for 24/7. Then, he prepared for having a baby, if you are unready, you should protect yourself in many ways such as using condoms, contraceptive pills or others, these are for yourself and our world.
Neglect of Baby
Babies are born innocent, jewel and so cute. While the wonderful life starting, the twist of fate conduct to face the wicked world all along. Sadly, they are suffered from loneliness, worthlessness, and depression that impact on them. The love of parents is the best for children and therefore they should intensively take care and set the babies on the right path. Thus, the baby neglect has been protected.
Delayed Education
Pregnancy related school dropouts have become a matter of public concern today. Teenage who become pregnant had to resort to unsafe abortions or they face school expulsion. More over teenage who dropped out of school due to pregnancy usually never returned to school to complete their education after childbirth, their opportunities for socioeconomic advancement is limited. Others who were planning to attend college in the future may put off that experience after becoming pregnant. They may decide to focus on the baby or getting married rather than pursuing education.
Economic Consequences
Teenage pregnancy is now facing many problems surroundings them such as friends, family, and social. Another problem is Financial, teen pregnancy who still in school or university cannot afford for all expenses since they get pregnant on their own. They only earn the money from a parent. This problem might lead to an abortion or abandoned baby in the future. Raising up a child cost lots of money to pay for foods, cloths, vaccines, hospital and others. Money seem not to be a problem fora family who does not have any economic problem, but for teen pregnant in a poor family is an issue to concern. Many children in Thailand who was born from teen mother in the poor family become children with behaviour problem which effect from inappropriate care since they were kids also the educations problems in the future. financial problem has an affect not only on teen pregnant but also the baby and family. It is important to provide an information to pregnancy in teenagers and also supporting those teenagers who face this issue.
Negative Social Effect
Teenage mothers are pressured by society to feel guilty and ashamed. Teen moms often find difficulty in discrimination at school which leads to bullying and dropout. Moreover, taking of new born baby requires new life style change. Some girls don’t prepare themselves to quit fun activities they used to do with friends such as partying, drinking or extracurricular activities.
