Teen pregnancy is a major issue. A teen having a baby is likely to face poor education, risky behaviors that lead to poor health issues, and child welfare. Only around 50 percent of teen mothers have received a High School diploma and only 30 percent have earned their GED (General Education Development) certificate by the age of 22. 90 percent of women have earned their High School diploma who has not given birth during their adolescence years, and it is only at a 10 percent to see a teen mother a two-to-four-year college program. It is the same for teen fathers too. Teen fathers have a 25 to 30 percent less probability of graduating High School than a boy who is not a teen dad. Childre born to teen mothers will end up with many problems including the following: having a higher risk for low birth weight and infant mortality; have fewer skills and be less prepared to learn when they enter Kindergarten; have lower levels of emotional support and cognitive stimulation; have behavior problems and chronic medical conditions; have higher rates of foster care placement; rely more heavily on publicly funded health care; be incarcerated at some time during adolescence; have lower achievement and drop out of School; also give birth as a teen; and be unemployed as a young adult. The long effects continue for teen parents and their children even after adjusting to the factors that increased the teens risk for pregnancy in the first place. Teen pregnancy costs U.S. taxpayers about $11 billion (about $34 per person in the US) per year due to increased health care and foster care, increased incarceration rates among children of teen parents, and lost tax revenue because of lower educational attainment and income among teen mothers. There are plenty of ways to prevent teenage pregnancy. Educate about sexuality. Support youth development programs among adolescents to talk openly about their feelings and experiences related to sexuality. Increase the use of contraceptives (birth control). You can go to your family doctor and find the one right for you. Monitor the influence of the media. Monitor the type of content children read, watch, and listen. Teen pregnancy needs to be talked about within the community and help make sure it is prevented.
