Teenage Pregnancy And Its Consequences

The consequences of teenage pregnancy can be biological and social. When an individual has gone though the harrowing physical and emotional experiences of giving birth she is forever a different person. She may feel that she has fulfilled her biological role. In modern society women sometimes leave it too late and then find that they have foregone what is a deeply fulfilling experience.

In some cultures it is considered quite an accomplishment if a girl can be married by arrangement at the age of fourteen, as was the case with Marie Antoinette. In other societies sex with a girl under the age of sixteen is considered statutory rape.

Native speakers of English usually understand that there is an element of disapproval in the phrase. It has a certain modality which suggests disapproval. Most commonly the phrase would be used in the context of problematic social issues.

Most girls are fertile throughout their teens. And when families were large they would have started having children from the ages of seventeen onwards. Now the social situation is quite different and a career outside the family has replaced six or seven children.

Young women tend to be healthier than older ones. They are actually less likely to have obstetrical problems but if they are very young they will probably have lighter babies. This can prove a difficulty because they are young and inexperienced but early maternity problems are likely to be less serious than those that lie ahead. In many cases a young girl will have the advice of older women and may be more inclined to take it than an older first time mother might.

Socially the first aspect of a young mother's life to suffer with motherhood will be education. Excellent online alternatives to the irrelevant routines of conventional education exist online. However all education requires concentration and commitment. When a pregnancy has come to fruition the howling demands of an infant can easily drown all thought of educational advancement. Consequently the future prospects of a young woman can be severely curtailed.

Young mothers tend to be single mothers. The boys who enjoyed the sex can evaporate when reality strikes, leaving parents to resume responsibilities that they thought were almost over. A young woman who has an unplanned and unsupported child blight her own future and that of her child. She will almost certainly become dependent on someone or other and may perhaps become so seriously indebted that it will take her many years to recover, if she ever does. In some case she may have to resort to menial or degrading employment just to survive.

Statistics show that teenage pregnancies vary from one country to another. Cultural cohesion and political policies seem to have a role in deciding how individuals behave. In South Africa the social stigma that once applied to young unmarried mothers has largely disappeared. Schoolgirls often have children sired by their teachers and are assured of a child grant for every child they have. In some cases this is seen, at least initially, as an easy income because it exceeds what the girl could earn without a child. It is her child who suffers from being raised by a poorly educated, ill qualified and socially unproductive mother. In the long run society suffers too. However, not all teenagers are alike and some survive, and thrive as young mothers.


The Social Consequences Of Teenage Pregnancy

There are both biological and social consequences of teenage pregnancy but it is probably the latter that have the most serious consequences. Most girls become fertile around the age of fourteen. Traditionally it is considered prudent to delay motherhood until the age of eighteen or later. In modern society career minded women sometimes delay for too long and then struggle to get pregnant.

In some societies marriage before the age of twenty is considered imprudent but in others girls are married by arrangement as young as fourteen. In such cases a very young wife might not be considered abnormal. In other societies sex before the age of sixteen is considered statutory rape.

In popular English discourse the term is understood to have precise modality. It implies disapproval of something that is seen to imprudent and socially regrettable

Biologically girls are ready to be mothers as teenagers. When women had a dozen children it was probably wise to begin around the age of seventeen but now that it is the norm is to have one or two children and a career outside the family the situation is quite different.

Because younger people are generally expected to be healthier than older ones it is probably safer for women to have children when they are younger. The disapprobation that is evident when young girls maternity is concerned derives from social and not biological factors. Young mother do tend to have smaller offspring and their inexperience might compound the difficulties in tending to young babies. However, such difficulties could be dwarfed by what lies ahead.

The first social concern of a young girl who finds herself pregnant may be education. Many girl who are quite mature at the age of fourteen might at first be delighted to escape the futile routine of classroom schooling. There are now very good online alternatives. Theoretically education need not suffer but in practice the demands of an infant can soon distract a young mother from study. If she lets it slip she can jeopardize her future employment prospects.

Many teenagers who become pregnant are not married and the father of their child might be a sapling himself unable to earn a living. In some cases he may dissolve into the landscape eschewing any responsibility for the child. The hapless young mother may have to return to parents for support or she might find herself solely responsible for her own and her offspring's upkeep. Some young mothers get seriously into debt and others become dependent on someone for a long time.

Cultural and political circumstances in different countries seem to have an influence on teenage pregnancy. In general countries with strong cultures like Japan and Korea have fewer whilst countries where cultural norms have unraveled like Britain and America have more. However, it is in sub- Saharan Africa where cultural norms are totally confused that most occur. In South Africa teachers often impregnate their students and the social stigma that used to attach to early, unplanned and unwed motherhood has all but disappeared. The cause of the problem may be generous child grants which ensure that a schoolgirl is ensured of an income as long as she keeps having children, It is society and the children themselves who bear the major consequences.


Teenage Pregnancy Has Social And Biological Implications

Teenage pregnancy is both a biological and a social issue that has a very long history. In early times it was probably not recognized as an issue at all. Females become fertile around the age of fourteen and in some societies they were married to a friend or business partner as soon as possible. The fact they might have become pregnant soon after that would not have been considered much of a talking point.

In western societies marriage before the age of eighteen can raise eyebrows. In many communities sex with girls under the age of eighteen is considered rape. However, the term refers to any girl who gives birth before the age of twenty.

In many cases people would think first of an unmarried girl when hearing the phrase, and thinking of it as a social issue. This points to the probability that social implications are more significant than biological ones.

Biologically there are few problems associated with young adults having babies. In the days when families consisted of twelve or thirteen children women must have started very young in order to have so many children before the end of child bearing age at around forty.

Girls in their early teens may have smaller babies but in general it can be assumed that young women are likely to have fewer obstetrical problems than older ones. The low birth rate of first babies is a feature of many different kinds of animals. Young human mothers also tend to have smaller babies and this could compound the problem of inexperience since it is fairly certain that the maternal instincts of human beings could be less pronounced that is the case with other animals.

The social implications of early motherhood are of a totally different order to biological issues. In the first place there are educational implications. It is now possible to get an online education of better quality that a conventional high school one, but a mother is distracted frequently and will often not find the discipline necessary for independent study. She will be at risk of having only a basic qualification.

If a young girl becomes a single mother before she is economically independent she faces financial difficulties that may be beyond her comprehension. Accommodation, food, clothing and medicines will only be the immediate expenses. A long line of future obligations awaits and her earning power will be limited. She will most probably become dependent upon someone, or some form of degrading employment in order to fend for herself and her child.

Some countries have more teenage pregnancies than others. Those with 'enlightened' social policies which use tax payers' money to pay child grants have more than those which don't. For example, in South Africa many teenagers fall pregnant and in some circles it has become socially acceptable. No shame is attached and one country to another even teachers seem to have few qualms about impregnating their pupils in some cases. This is because the girls receive a government grant for each child and free medical attention. They see a pregnancy as something which will put them in line for some financial benefits in the short term and are oblivious of longer term obligations. It is the unborn children and larger society who will bear the consequences in the longer term.



