Teen Pregnancy Frequently Asked Questions
Question: How common is teenage pregnancy?
Answer:
The United States has the highest teen pregnancy rate among developed countries. About 760,000 teens become pregnant each year; 80% of those pregnancies are unintended and nearly one-third end in abortions.
Question: Is teen pregnancy a problem in the United States?
Answer: Yes, teen pregnancy remains a significant problem in this country. According to data from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), the preliminary birth rate for U.S. teenagers 15–19 years rose 3 percent between 2005 and 2006, the first increase reported since 1991. Three in ten teen girls become pregnant by age 20 and most of these pregnancies are unintended. Additionally one-quarter of teen parents have a second child before they turn 20. These birth rates for teens remain considerably higher than rates in other industrialized countries.
Each year, more than 750,000 teenagers become pregnant. These young mothers are at risk complications during pregnancy and childbirth due to lack of prenatal care including poor weight gain, pregnancy-induced hypertension, and anemia. Their babies are more likely to be born prematurely and at low birth weight. Children of teen moms are also far more likely to be poor than children whose parents are older, married, and have completed high school before having children. Teen mothers are less likely to complete school and more likely to be single parents. Less than half of teens who begin their families before completing high school ever earn a high school diploma.
For the additional teen pregnancy data go to the Guttmacher Institute’s publication titled, U.S. Teenage Pregnancy Statistics National and State Trends and Trends by Race and Ethnicity updated September, 2006.
Question: What are some of the costs related to teen childbearing in the United States?
Answer:
Teen childbearing costs taxpayers at least $9.1 billion annually. Most of these costs are associated with the negative consequences for the children of teen mothers including the costs for health care, child welfare, foster care, and the incarceration of the sons of teen mothers. Other costs resulting from teen childbearing include public assistance for programs like TANF, Food Stamps, and Housing as well as lost tax revenue for the lower earnings of the teen parents and their children. By the Numbers: The Public Costs of Teen Childbearing from the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy documents the public costs of teen childbearing at both the national and state level.
Question: Where can I find some facts on the effects of a declining teen birth rate?
Answer:
Teen pregnancy is a major contributor to poverty, single parenthood, and limited futures for adolescents and their children. Statistics show that with a declining teen birth rate there can be a tremendous reduction in the number of U.S. children living in poverty. Data show the power of prevention and how prevention can make a measurable contribution to reducing poverty in children. See the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy What If? information resource for facts and data on how teen pregnancy prevention can contribute to the improvement of the overall child well-being in the United States and for a state-by-state analysis of the declining teen birth rates in all of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Question: Where can I find teen pregnancy rates for my state?
Answer:
The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy provides a State Information section on their website. This section is an interactive tool that locates information on teen pregnancy, births, and sexual behavior among teens. It includes trend data, state profiles, state-by-state comparisons, summaries of state teen pregnancy prevention programs, county and city data, media campaigns and legislative activity, as well as state contact information and related links. Another source of statistics for national, state, and city level data on teen pregnancy, childbearing, and sexual behavior can be found on the Child Trends: Facts at a Glance, an annual statistical newsletter.
Question: Where can I get more information on teen pregnancy?
Answer:
There are many organizations that offer information on this subject; their views on pregnancy and reproductive health issues vary. You may want to check your local telephone book for nearby agencies, like Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Also many university and college health centers have accessible reproductive health departments.
Question: What are teen pregnancy prevention programs?
Answer: Teen pregnancy prevention programs help reduce pregnancies among teens and there are several different kinds of prevention programs.
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Abstinence education programs encourage postponing sexual involvement until marriage or until a person is mature enough to handle sexual activity, and a potential pregnancy, in a responsible manner.
- Knowledge-based programs focus on teaching adolescents about their bodies and normal functions as well as providing detailed information about contraceptives.
- Clinic-focused programs provide easier access to information, counseling by health care providers, and contraceptive services. Many of these are through school-based clinics.
- Peer counseling programs involve older and respected teens who encourage other teens to resist peer and social pressures to become sexually involved. Peer counseling programs also provide, for those teens already involved in sexual activities, the skills to negotiate within relationships and the information needed to obtain and successfully use contraceptives.
However, teen pregnancy prevention programs alone do not solve the problem. Parents, schools, faith-based communities and the media all need to be involved.
Question: Are there effective teen pregnancy prevention programs and where can I find them?
Answer:
The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy provides information on science-based programs that work to prevent pregnancy. Their brochure What Works: Curriculum-Based Programs That Prevent Teen Pregnancy provides an overview of what is known about carefully evaluated interventions that help prevent teen pregnancy. They have several other resources that provide more detail about these programs including Emerging Answers 2007.
Teen pregnancy prevention programs targeted to Latino teens are included in another publication produced by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy titled, Bridging Two Worlds: How Teen Pregnancy Prevention Programs
Can Better Serve Latino Youth. This publication summarizes research, identifies effective programs, and provides advice for working with Latinos in the prevention of teen pregnancy.
Advocates for Youth creates programs and provides information, training, and strategic assistance to youth-serving organizations to help young people make informed and responsible decisions about their reproductive and sexual health. Also, Plain Talk a program from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, is a community level communication strategy, that helps parents and other knowledgeable adults have meaningful conversations with teens regarding sexual issues to help prevent teen pregnancy.
Question: What can parents do to help their children avoid teen pregnancy and parenthood?
Answer: A parent can influence their children’s sexual behavior. The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy provides tools for parents to use to help their children prevent teen pregnancy and parenthood through their Parent portal on their website. These resources from their Parent portal are based on research and information received from experts in the field.
Question: Where could a pregnant individual, her family and/or friends find information on all the options of pregnancy, as well as prenatal care that would be free and confidential?
Answer: The America’s Pregnancy Helpline provides education, information and support about pregnancy. They will answer questions about nutrition, fetal development, or possible complications during pregnancy as well as adoption and abortion. They can be contacted toll-free and confidentially at 1- 800-672-2296 or by email at aph@thehelpline.org
Credits
Last revised 12/05/2008
