Our society is supposedly based on certain ‘morals’ and hence, teenage pregnancy is kind of a taboo. Society does not really embrace a pregnant teenager with open arms. This is why in large parts of the world, the society shuns it, making it disturbing for the teenage mother to be.
There are many reasons for the society to sideline what they believe to be a predicament. First, the reason for which a teenager gets pregnant is more often due to wrong choices. Second, teenage pregnancy means a full stop to everything else in life, leading to a social exclusion. The factors due to which a teenager gets pregnant can be listed as the following.
- Sexual Abuse
- Dating Violence
- Socio-economic factors
- Childhood environment
It is also disturbing to know that even when most of these factors befall upon the teenagers, the society does not waste time to criticise and blame the girl. Now, let us analyse certain effects that teenage pregnancy has on society.
- Illiteracy – Teenagers who get pregnant at an early age often have to drop out of school or college. This puts a break to their education. Society at large gets harmed because at this rate the literacy rate drops.
- Financial support – A teenager who delivers a baby has to provide for its food, clothing and baby care products. Financially, they need to be sound and so they begin job hunting; some may also end up on the streets, commit to prostitution and other such vices.
- Poverty – Given the fact that a teenager is under educated and is a mother, there are chances that she may not land up a good job. Biological fathers in most such cases have the least role to play. Poverty thereby, creeps in very swiftly.
- Health – Because the mother is inexperienced or not mature enough to handle such an important task, the child’s health may be at doldrums.
It is very important to understand that the structure of human life is age related. Most of us have heard the phrase, “there is an age for everything”. This is a very important adage and should not be thought to be a boring wise talk.
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