Teenagers in the United States: Sexual Activity, Research Paper Example

The implication of teen pregnancy is the type of pregnancy associated with females at the age of below twenty years at the time that the pregnancy ends. The onset of teen pregnancy may coincide with the beginning of puberty before the individual encounters the first menstrual cycle (Singh S, & Darroch, 14-23). Consequently, the pregnancy is experienced immediately the menstrual periods set in. Menarche is experienced in females of between 12 and 13 years wherefore girls are appropriately nourished. However, this does not imply that the girls have attained the right stage for pregnancy. For this reason, teen pregnancies coupled with early childbearing are associated with critical social as well as economic challenges with substantial short term and long term implications on the teens as well as their parents.

Pregnancy for teens is associated with similar obstetric issues for other women. However, supplementary medical concerns for pregnant mothers under the age of 15 years are common. Accordingly, pregnant mothers at the age bracket of 15 to 19 years encounters remarkable risks that can be attributed to socioeconomic factors (Martinez, Copen & Abma, 25-34). This risk issues may not affect mothers of the right age of pregnancy. The most prominent risks in this regard involve bearing children with low birth weight, anemia, premature onset of labor and pre-eclampsia. Even with strict observance of antenatal care, such risks are unavoidable in majority of teens in their pregnancy.

Teens from majority of the developed nations face insurmountable social issues during pregnancy such as escalated poverty rates, low levels of education and poor outcomes for the children born by teenage mothers. In addition, it is a common scenario for teen pregnancy to occur outside marriage, a situation that leads to social stigma in majority of cultures as well as communities. Conversely, majority of teen pregnancies in the developing countries occurs in the context of a marriage. For this reason, such pregnancies are welcomed and cherished by members of the family and the society at large. However, such pregnancies have their own side of challenges as well. Cases of malnutrition coupled with inappropriate health care are common issues that subsequently results to medical problems.

Most of societies encourage early manage and have a strong affinity to traditional gender roles. These are critical factors in promoting the rising cases of teen pregnancies. In most of countries in sub-Saharan Africa region for example, early pregnancies are commonly linked to blessings because the young woman has proved to be fertile, and fertility is highly valued in these communities. Different countries have different marriage age targets and the countries that set the limit extremely low usually encounter a high percentage of teen pregnancies. Furthermore, different regions in the same country have different figures of teen pregnancies. The traditional rural settings of most countries documents higher rates of teen pregnancies as compared to the urban cities. In this regard, the disparity can be attributed to availability of safe sexeducation from the guardians and the school. Lack of this education leads to high instances of teenage pregnancies.

It is important to note that, educating the teenagers on birth control measures and dealing with peers who put pressure on having premature sex is a critical concern in addressing the issue of teen pregnancies. All in all, majority of teenagers who are caught in the trap of early pregnancy lack appropriate cognition of the critical facts in sexuality. In most societies however, adolescent marriages are discouraged and this is common in developed nations, but teenagers have little access to contraceptive methods at the time of their first intercourse, and if they have access to the relevant contraceptive approaches, the knowledge on correct use of the method is lacking. Additionally, the contraceptive method may be applied but high rates of failure are experienced, thus leading to problems associated with unwanted pregnancies, which is a common feature in developed countries (Hoffman, 121-134).

The governments of majority of the developed countries have expressed great concern for teen pregnancies, thus implementing policies that are intended to reverse the trend of escalating cases of teen pregnancies. Consequently, one of the most effective approach involve instigation of programs of sex education with the ultimate objective of limiting cases of early pregnancies and associated issues such as the occurrence of sexually transmitted diseases. Majority of the countries have therefore achieved the goal of reducing teen pregnancies despite sexual relationships being rampart among teenagers, and this is attributed to concerted efforts on providing all-inclusive and balance knowledge on issues of sexuality to the teenagers. In this regard, prevention of teen pregnancies is an achievable endeavor with programs of sex education and availability of birth control measures being emphasized (Perper, Peterson  & Manlove, 112-123).

Research has indicated that, teenage pregnancies are a significant contributor to socioeconomic expenses within the family and the entire community, affecting the children and their parents (National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy). Additionally, the entire nations is also affected because the government has to set aside a substantial part of taxpayers’ money to cater for the expenses associated with intensive health care, high costs of incarceration of the children born from teen mothers as well as the lost tax attributed to low education attained by teen mothers. Early pregnancies have been linked with escalated cases of school and college dropout, meaning that, this segment of the population lacks the chance to engage in active productive activities, which subsequently translates to lost taxes for the government. Additionally, the children born and brought up by teenage mothers have higher chances of low achievements in school coupled with the possibility of dropout from high school and colleges, higher chances of health problems, potentials for incarceration at a stage in their adolescent, possibility of giving birth at teenage and lack a position for employment.

Prevention of teenage pregnancy should therefore be taken as a top priority in any government due to its implication in public health and the critical contribution it plays in the health bas well as the quality of life of the teenager. Evidence-based programs of addressing prevention of teen pregnancy should focus on predetermined protective factors that are based on skills, knowledge, attributes as well as beliefs that are linked to teen pregnancies. Teens must be given an opportunity to access the relevant information on sexual issues, pregnancy and related complications such as STDs and HIV. Teenagers must be engaged in constructive communication with their parents and other adults concerning issues of sexuality, the significance of contraception, abstinence from sex and use of condom if sex has to take place.

Works cited

Hoffman, SD. Kids Having Kids: Economic Costs and Social Consequences of Teen Pregnancy. Washington, DC: The Urban Institute Press; 2008.

Martinez, G, Copen, CE & Abma JC. Teenagers in the United States: Sexual activity, contraceptive use, and childbearing, 2006–2010. National Survey of Family Growth. National Center for Health Statistics. National Vital Health Stat. 2011;23(31).

National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, Counting It Up: The Public Costs of Teen Childbearing 2014. Accessed May 21, 2014.

Perpe,r K, Peterson, K, & Manlove J. Diploma Attainment Among Teen Mothers. Child Trends, Fact Sheet Publication #2010-01: Washington, DC: Child Trends; 2010.

Singh S, & Darroch JE. Adolescent pregnancy and childbearing: levels and trends in developed countries. Fam Plann Perspect. 2000;32(1):14-23.