The Effects of Teenage Pregnancy Should Be Of National Concern

Teenage pregnancy is a very alarming problem that demands immediate action from very citizen. In the case of the United States, the rate of teenage pregnancy is still considerably high and the effects of teenage pregnancy have gripped almost every aspect in the American life. In fact, the country has the highest teenage pregnancy rate among all the countries in the western region of the globe.

The cost of teenage pregnancy

The cost of pregnancy in the United States is very alarming. According to the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, the government of the United States spends as much as $9.1 billion of public funds for teenage birth in 2004. Such expenses include costs for public assistance, child care and welfare, maternal and child health care, and other pertinent expenses.

The costs of teen pregnancy are very substantial. Apparently, aside from the actual public funds that are spent on pregnancy, teenage pregnancy also result in lost tax revenues and increased public expenses in foster care, health care, public assistance and criminal justice system. The total cost actually amount to almost seven billion dollars.

Adverse effects of pregnancy on a nationwide scale

Generally, teenage women who become pregnant at a very young age are prone to several negative consequences. Among these negative consequences are reduced educational achievement, reduced potential in earning money, poor psychological functioning, low marital stability, greater health risks and larger families.

Contrary to most misconceptions about the effects of teenage pregnancy, it should be noted that problems concerning teenage mothers will largely affect the whole country.

The reduced educational achievement and the reduced potential in earning money can definitely result to poverty.

Poverty is something that concerns everybody on a nationwide scale. Poverty can run in the family and eventually, the mother and the child will suffer from lost opportunities in schooling, poor nutrition, and increased affinity to commit crimes, and other negative consequences that demand increased government spending on many public services.

Low educational attainment is one of the effects of teenage pregnancy, it should be realized that such can contribute to the overall decline of a country’s labor resource. If people are not equipped with good education, this typically means that they will eventually end up having low-paying jobs, or they will be underemployed or totally unemployed. Moreover, they are technically considered as lost potentials for the labor industry.

Recent national statistics show that almost fifty percent of all teenage weddings that were prompted by teenage pregnancies will likely end-up in divorce. As such, it can be concluded that the apparent low marital stability caused by teenage pregnancies can eventually result in increased national spending for divorce cases, child support filings, and other legal actions.

In addition to that, teenage mothers and children are faced with many health risks. Health studies and researches show that teenage mothers are at a high risk for pregnancy complications and problems during delivery.

Also, babies that are born to teenage mothers have a higher risk of serious health problems. They also have higher risks for physical and mental birth defects. And, since most of the teenage mothers do not have sufficient income to cover for the medical needs for themselves and their children, most of them eventually turn to public health services. When this happens, the health effects of teenage pregnancy become a national health concern. GP