Teen Pregnancy And The Teenage Pregnancy Rates

Teen pregnancy continues to be a problem in America even though the CDC documents a decrease from 2007-2009 in all racial groups. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, n.d.). Reducing the number of pregnancies in teens 15-17 is a core indicator identified by Healthy People 2020 to assess the status of adolescent health. Children born to teens are at risk for health concerns from being of low birth weight and having poor prenatal care such as delayed development. (Magness, 2012). Repeat pregnancy, dependence on welfare, and poverty are some of the results of adolescent pregnancy. Teen mothers tend to have health problems such as hypertension, and anemia and are at high risk for early delivery. Magness looks at the issue from the teen’s viewpoint and discusses the idea that some teens become pregnant to provide stability in an otherwise chaotic life and can gain maturity from the experience. Emphasis on continuing their education after delivery can prevent repeat pregnancies. Lack of productive or positive social activities or guidance can leave room for a teen to indulge in risky behavior to occupy their time. Peer pressure and influence from present day norms can cause teenagers to give in to early onset of sexual activity (Kirven, 2014). Finding after school or extracurricular activities can promote a healthier self

Although the data proves what has caused the rate increase, there are other factors that can affect the outcome of the data. The data in Fig. 1 and Fig 2 shows the Pregnancy Risk among Hispanic women will increase and make up the largest portion of this age group. While most sex education programs were not geared toward the Hispanic community in the 1990’s, it has seen in improvement in the classroom settings. The postponement of parenthood until in the wake of moving on from secondary school improves the probability of getting a well-paying employment and reducing the rate of poverty among the future Hispanic community. It is vital that we attempt to impart these truths to the general population around us; furthermore, bolster persons that may need assistance. For all ethnic groups, in particular Hispanics, there are factors that contribute to this such as peer pressure, images of sex in the media and magazines, and the embarrassment that goes along with getting contraception which could contribute to the high teen pregnancy. While I have no experienced being a teenage father, I have witnessed several tragedies in my career as a Peace Officer. I was dispatched to a residence in reference to a verbal dispute between a mother and her

“The national Hispanic teenage pregnancy rate is twice that of non-Hispanic whites, and in California, Hispanic adolescents are four times more likely than whites to become parents”. (guttmacher.org, 2004) . This rapid growth in Hispanic population and high rate of teen pregnancies is putting pressure on the educational and health care systems to address the needs of Hispanics. Many young Latina/Hispanic girls face discrimination, poverty, and limited access to healthcare and most importantly cultural challenges, which can place them at a high risk for unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. Thus there is a clear need for teenage pregnancy

Since many Mexican Americans aren’t very open with their parents about this subject, many may avoid telling them when they think they are pregnant or if they have become pregnant. This leads to lack of proper health care they need in order to have a healthy pregnancy. The baby, as well as the mother can have a high risk of health issues. The habits of these adolescent mothers are more like to be unhealthy, especially if they are not aware that they are pregnant in the first place. The younger the mother may be, the higher the infant is at risk for dying the first year of its life (Medline Plus, 2014). The bodies of these teens are not ready for childbearing and delivery so this also puts them at risk. Infants that are born to adolescents are 2-6 times more likely to be born with a low birth weight (Medline Plus, 2014). The baby and mother also have a higher risk of illness and death. Some medical complications that may arise are as follows: Significant anemia, Placenta Previa , Toxemia and Pregnancy-induced hypertension. Other risks of becoming a teen mother is that they have a higher chance of dropping out of school, only 36% of Mexican American teen mothers will finish high school (NCSL,

Over the last few decades the rates in teen pregnancy have been a debate; did they rise over the past few years or did they actually decline? Contrary to some doctors and politicians the numbers associated with teen pregnancy have decline over the last couple of years. Although there are still people out there who believe this to be an issue it’s made more of an issue than it actually is. The ads and commercials are set out to scare teen-agers into believing that were at an all time high for this issue, but realistically its actually the exact opposite. Teen pregnancy rates haven’t dropped on there over the course of the years. There are a few major factors that have contributed a great deal to this change. Those changes include but are not limited to: more resources being available to these teenagers to prevent themselves from becoming pregnant, society is more open to talking about this issue as well as the religion and culture change aspect of families today. Despite the beliefs of others, teen pregnancy rates are at an all time low for the first time in decades.

Since the 1920’s, teen pregnancy among the Latino community has been one of the biggest social problems. Factors like poor or no sex education, negative media portrayal, poor or lower than average educational levels, social inequality and family pressure, such as encouraging womanhood in teen years, contribute to the high percentage of teen pregnancy among Latinas. However, teen pregnancy among Latinas has been decreasing in recent years. Recent programs such as public service announcement and sex education continue to help educate young Latinas and lower the risk of teen pregnancy. Nevertheless, Latinas still represent the group of people with the highest teen pregnancy. One in six Latinas between the ages of 14-20 will have a child at some point, and 30% of all Latino teenage parents have children out of wedlock.

Birth rates in African American and Hispanic teens are substantially higher than whites, a trend that has persisted for decades. Even though pregnancy rates among teens are at an all time low. It is still a major issue but mostly affecting the urban communities. In this research paper I will be comparing and demonstrating the relationships between teenage pregnancy, social issues, and education.

Despite teenage pregnancy rates dropping more than fifty percent in recent years, it is within the Hispanic community that teen pregnancy continues to remain a serious public and social issue. When compared to other ethnic sectors in the United States, Hispanic females continue to hold a higher birth rate than others, being twice more than that of non-Hispanics. In general, there are the many apparent obstacles and consequences when dealing with this situation. Young adult parents must overcome educational, financial, and emotional problems months before their child is born.

Mexican American women for over 20 years have had the highest rate of teen pregnancy compared to Anglo women. Teenage birthrates have decreased as a whole but even with teenage births decreasing Mexican American women are still at the top, having the highest teen birth rates with 46.3 births for every 1,000 teens that are females. There are several reasons for this startling fact; this paper is going to illustrate some of the misconceptions when dealing with Latina sexuality and reproduction and also the negative results that came from it. To illustrate this alarming issue, some misconceptions about Mexican American sexuality and reproduction will be shared. Such as, most Mexican American teenage or adolescent mothers may lack knowledge. Meaning they lack the proper prevention information and the risks that come along with engaging in intercourse. When talking about issues dealing with any person form the Mexican American community one can not forget the stereotypes that come with being a part of the group. With that being said there are some false statements when talking about the reproduction of Mexican American women that can change a persons view on these young women and it is one of the several reasons there is an issue. One cannot pin point the reason why exactly Mexican American women have the highest rate of teen pregnancy. There are many forms and ways that an issue or issues can cause damage.

The teen birth rate in New Mexico has declined by 35 % over the last decade. However, New Mexico is the second highest teen pregnancy in the nation. Unintended pregnancies within our community of Las Cruces, NM have evolved into a public health issue within the Dona Ana County. The goal for the community of Las Cruces, NM is to build a public health program that will help reducing unintended pregnancies among teenagers. By establishing a prevention program, our purpose is to educate teenagers on the planning their pregnancies. This project will increase the number of desired and healthier babies.

Teenage pregnancy has been viewed as an issue for many years, not only for teenage mothers but for babies as well. Much importance has been placed on this subject for the reason that although these rates are declining, they remain elevated. The United States represents over 600,000 American teen pregnancies every year, making this the highest rate in the industrialized world (Steinberg, 2017). Unfortunately, ethnic minorities in the United States have a predisposition to the many social, educational and economic disadvantages that in fact shape adolescent sexual behavior and lead to the decision of adolescent motherhood. This paper will illustrate teenage pregnancy rates over the last few years, the factors that impact teen pregnancy, contraception and the likelihood of teen pregnancies across different ethnic groups.

Teenage birth rates, defined as live births per one thousand 15-19-year-old US females, declined by 10% from 2012 to 2013 from 29.4 to 26.5. In fact, the birth rate has been on a steady decline over the past 20 years, from 61.8 in 1991 to 26.5 in 2013. Teenage pregnancy represents both a health and social inequality in our society. Specifically, teenage childbearing is a public health issue because teenage mothers are more likely to experience negative social outcomes such as dropping out of school. This is a self-reinforcing cycle, as children of teenage mothers face higher chances of poor academic achievement as well as getting pregnant or getting someone else pregnant in their teenage years (CDC). Although the overall rates of teenage pregnancy have dropped, ultimately, the variations in the rates reflect the intersecting disparities regarding race and ethnicity, income inequality, geography, and environmental factors, which in turn affect access to medical care, education, and resources.

Even though teenage pregnancy rates have decreased in the U.S. in recent years, the rates are far behind European countries. Studies have shown that U.S. teenagers have (a) high rates of sexual intercourse at a younger age, (b) high rates of sex without contraceptives, (c) high rates of pregnancy, (d) and high number of multiple sex partners in comparison to European countries like Sweden, France, Netherland (Bell, 2009).

"Teen pregnancy in the United States: In 2015, a total of 229,715 babies were born to women aged 15-19 years old, for a birth rate of 22.3 per 1,000 women in this age group. This is another record for U.S. teens and a drop of 8% from 2014. Although reasons for the declines are not totally clear, evidence suggests these declines are due to more teens abstaining from sexual activity, and more teens who are sexually active using birth control than in previous years. Still, the U.S. teen pregnancy rate is substantially higher than in other western industrialized nations, and racial/ethnic and geographic disparities in teen birth rates persist (cdc.gov)." As teenagers (in the United States), we are peer pressured or tempted to try new things. Some teens tend to try out drugs, and alcohol. However, some are having unprotected sex in which, is leads to having babies. This is called, teenage pregnancy. This has caused the United States to create records based off of the statistics and facts given from, researchers across the United States. In order to help prevent teenage pregnancy in the United States, teenagers must understand why, having a baby now isn’t such a smart move on their part.

Teen pregnancy is a very controversial social issue and the vast majority of Americans consider the outrageous rate of teen pregnancies a severe issue, certainly a problematic occurrence that is believed to be a moral decline in our country. Teenagers are physiologically capable of reproducing but not emotionally or financially prepared to be parents at such a tender age. Through various research studies a plethora of determinants has pin pointed teens unprecedented pregnancies. One cause of this problem is the apparent indication of social separation or disadvantage. Within this issue you would find poverty, single parent households, educational disadvantages on the parents behalf, a lack family/parental support, and unemployment. A child’s educational performance, inappropriate sexual acts, and inferior apprehensions about their futures play a vital role in teen pregnancies as well. Amongst the listed disadvantages the three that take precedent are lacks of family communication, sexual abuse, and poverty. Furthermore, teen mothers do not fit the ideal ideology of the normative scheduling of motherhood, therefore, ultimately resulting in negative consequences for them and society. What needs to be understood is, as to why the numbers of teens are becoming parents at such a vernal age.