Teen Pregnancy: The Importance of Early Prevention - Literature review Example

Teen Pregnancy: The Importance of Early Prevention Denise Butler Teen pregnancy is a serious problem, one that each of us must address in order to contribute in decreasing the number of unplanned teen births each year. Therefore, in order to accomplish this goal it is imperative that every single one of us start educating our children and youths on the importance of remaining abstinence and / or the the use of contraception as effective tools to prevent such unplanned pregnancies among adolescents or avoiding situations that can increase risky behavior. As a result Studies show that U. S. taxpayers spend billions of dollars on teen pregnancy and childbirth. This essay will include a comprehensive discussion based on studies and research as well as empirical evidence with regard to teen pregnancies and its impact on the teens as well as on the community as a whole. However, studies, research, and personal involvements of in dealing with pregnant teens will be cited. In actuality It concludes with the fact that teen pregnancy remains one of the most difficult issues that teens, their family, and society face today. Teen pregnancy has increased significantly at least more teens become pregnant because they lack the knowledge or awareness to avoid becoming pregnant. In 2009, the data compiled statistics indicated that more than 400,000 infants were born to teens in the age group of 15-19 years (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2011). Of course, most of these pregnancies were unplanned and unwanted. For this reason, many teens found themselves unexpectedly pregnant without the finances, resources, and/or knowledge to become a single parent. According to Hoffman (2006), the cost of teen births to U.S. taxpayers (federal, state, and local) is at least $9.1 billion. These expenses are directly connected to the undesirable consequences of children born to teen mothers, which are contributed to the money spent on health care, foster care, and those teens that are incarcerated at one point or another. Therefore, it is imperative for each and every one of us to teach all teens, the importance of being abstinent and to avoid risky behavior that may cause unplanned and/or unwanted pregnancies. The perceived expectations of teen pregnancy prevention programs had no considerable impact in reducing the number of teenage pregnancies, the cost, or the effects on society as a whole in the 21st Century. Despite the measures offered introduced to decrease the number of teen pregnancies in this country there are many various issues surrounding teen pregnancy that have caused numbers to continually to rise. Although the reasons behind the same are widely debated, two of the most common reasons include poverty and emphasis on abstinence-only education (U.S. News Health, 2010). Teen births have a negative impact on economic, educational, behavioral, health, and judicial systems (Herrman,2008). In addition, eliminating sex education and awareness programs in schools may be a major contributing factor to the increase of teen pregnancy over the past decade. Ultimately, Furthermore it has also been observed that the effects of teen pregnancy often causes financial hardships on their parents and cost society a large amount of money through the use of federal funded programs such as Welfare, Medicaid, and both healthcare and judicial systems. Also welfare programs directed at providing assistance to teenage mothers such as WIC (Women, Infant and Children) especially those who do not have the required facilities to take care of themselves or their children, require huge amount of federal assistance in the form of funding (Brown, 2010). According to Foreman (2011), as studies have shown, preventing problems on the front-end saves a substantial amount of money in the long-run. He further stated that 25% of teen moms go on welfare within three years after the birth of their child and 66% of families started by teenagers live in poverty. Furthermore, preventing teen pregnancy is essential in reducing the countries’ deficit, due to the high costs associated with adolescents having children during their teen years. Because this carries high cost not only for the parents of these teens but to their community as well, due to emotional, physical, and financial issues or problems caused. In fact, this led to the establishment of a national initiative that focuses on prevention resources to reduce the number of unplanned teen pregnancies and improve youths’ health (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). In addition, increasing teen awareness is beneficial in preventing sexuality sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) as well. As According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention also stated, “one in four teen girls has a sexually transmitted infection,”if this is not a public health catastrophe, what is?”. In contrast, Also, the health risks associated with teen pregnancies are directly related to the delay in receiving prenatal care or it was non-existent; evidence showed that 7.2% received no care at all (Center for Disease Control and Prevention). Although today teen pregnancy is not viewed as negative as it was in the past, it can be difficult for a teen girl to tell her parents that she is pregnant, as she may have anxiety in her parents’ reaction and the stigma she may feel when others know about her pregnancy. Needless to say, these are only a few reasons that prenatal care is delayed or not received. According to McGrew and Shore (1999), additional reasons that teenagers do not seek prenatal care are denial of pregnancy, fear of telling others, a lack of knowledge of the need for prenatal care, not aware of lack of awareness regarding the services offered, a casual attitude toward the need for prenatal care, and inappropriate methods of a prenatal service delivery. However, It has been widely established through studies, that early detection of pregnancy helps in can significantly reduce reducing the costs spent incurred on potential medical problems for both the teen mom and her unborn child providing medical assistance to the teens as well as on childcare. Therefore, the importance of the provision of early prenatal care can is of utmost significance in order to reduce the medical risks associated with the lack of early prenatal care it, which can range may lead to a range of negative health consequences ranging from low weight gain, anemia, hypertension or gestational diabetes for the mother, and a premature or low birth weight for the baby to name a few. In addition, teen mothers who have a tendency to smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol, or use other non-prescribed drugs that make which exposes them to serious health risks such as a high risk for premature childbirths or the delivery of babies with mental and/or physical birth defects (Hoffman). Also, if the mother has an unknown sexually transmitted disease (STD), she can pass the disease onto the risk of the disease being passed on to her unborn child rises significantly. So, it is extremely important for pregnant teens to seek medical care early and not delay receiving prenatal care. Many teens often tend to overlook the harsh realities of becoming pregnant because most teens are not aware of the risks involved or the cost of having and caring for a baby. Teen pregnancies not only affect the individuals involved it places additional stress on the parent(s) and other family members as well. It can lead to financial hardships on families when they learn their daughter is having a baby or they are told by their son that he has gotten a girl pregnant. Regardless of the situation, as a parent of a teen in this type of predicament,additional support from all family members will be needed as well as the support of other members’ in the community in which they live. Some studies have shown that most of the cases involving teen pregnancies are a result of sexual intercourse of a minor teenage girl with adult males, rather than teenage boys (Neinstein, 2007). Also, many unwanted teen pregnancies may be caused due to sexual abuse or coercive relationships. In such circumstances, the mental and emotional health needs of teenage girls far outrun their physical health need. The statistics are alarming, and imply the lack of effectiveness of sex education and highlights its failure to address such issues. Therefore, our focus is to keep these young girls in school so they may attain their education by completing high school or equivalent. In anycase, teen pregnancies cost billions of dollars a year, as many unwed teen mothers will require some type of government or federal support in one form or another such, as welfare or the program commonly known as WIC; that stands for Women, Infant, and Children. These are programs used to support mothers that are not capable of financial care for their children themselves (Brown, 2010). In fact, parenthood at an early age has further implications as teen moms are more likely to drop out of school and exhibit lower educational achievement than other teens their age. They are more apt prone to live in poverty, obtain rely on government assistance, and earn lower incomes the duration of in their lives lifetime. As a result, they give up Pregnancy at such an early age (i.e. during adolescence) forces them to relinquish their own childhood dreams and forsake their professional goals of leading having a better life lives as being a teen mom or dad parent can drastically affect their future plans. Likewise, the consequences of their behavior and actions can follow them for the rest of their lives. Per In the words of Herrman, “the cycle tends to repeat itself when the children of these teens become teenagers themselves”. Although teen pregnancies have decreased over the past few decades, it costs U.S. tax payers billions of dollars each year to provide for pregnant teens due to the large number of teens that who delay early prenatal care. Furthermore, when adults are able to communicate freely with teenagers and inform them about the risks and consequences of having children at a young age, it may prevent or reduce the number of teens that become pregnant on a yearly basis intervention measures such as introduction of sex education programs in schools, encouraging and facilitating better communication between the teachers and students as well as parents and students; and imparting knowledge regarding the significance of contraceptives in preventing unwanted pregnancies can go a long way in eliminating one of the greatest social evils faced by the society, in recent times. Of course, educating teens and providing them with knowledge and necessary tools they can use is important in reducing the large number of unplanned and unwanted teen pregnancies each year. In fact, the end result and main goals are preventing teen pregnancies and saving taxpayers billions of dollars which is being spent by the government each year, in an attempt to prevent and reduce teenage pregnancy. So far, their attempt has been minimal, right? The issue of teenage pregnancy is more of a concern when such pregnancy is unplanned, since it raises serious concerns regarding the security and future of the unwed teen mother – a social issue that threatens to disrupt the moral fabric of a predominantly heterosexual society. References Brown, S. (2010, April). The Critical Link: Preventing teen & unplanned pregnancy. Policy & Practice, 11-14. Retrieved from AIU Library: EBSCOST Discovery Service. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).(2011, April).About teen pregnancy. Teen pregnancy. Retrieved http://www.cdc.gov/TeenPregnancy/AboutTeenPreg.htm. Foreman, M. (2011).Taking Responsibility.State Legislatures, 37(2), 26. Retrieved from AIU Library: EBSCOST Discovery Service. Herrman, J. A. (2008). Adolescent perceptions of teen births. JOGNN: Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing (JOGNN). 37(1), 42-50. Retrieved from AIU Library: EBSCOST Discovery Service. Hoffman, S. (2006, October).By the numbers: the public cost of teen childbearing. The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. Retrieved from http://www.thenationalcampaign.org/resources/pdf/pubs/BTN_Full.pdf. McGrew, M. C., & Shore, W. B. (1999).The problem of teenage pregnancy. Retrieved from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0689/is_n1_v32/ai_10380944/?tag=content;col1. Neinstein, L. S., (2007). Adolescent health care: A practical guide, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Publication, Pp. 581-583 U.S. News Health (2010). Why teen pregnancies are on the rise [Available at: http://health.usnews.com/health-news/blogs/on-women/2010/01/26/why-teen-pregnancies-are-on-the-rise] Accessed: [February 2, 2012] Read More