Teenage Pregnancy

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             Teenage pregnancy has also been associated with sexual transmission of diseases. According to Darroch, Singh, & Frost, (2001) the United States has the highest rate of sexually transmitted diseases, (STD's), among teenage mothers of the developed countries studied. One of the diseases is Chlamydia. Those teenage mothers who have Chlamydia in the United States were found to be 1,132 cases per 100,000. The United States also has the highest rate of gonorrhea among teenagers within the developed countries (Darroch et al., 2001).
             Much attention has been focused on teenage mothers. Many people think that teenage mothers are at high risk for poor outcomes from pregnancy and birth. Phipps and Sowers (2002) measured risks factors linked to poor birth outcomes in teenage mothers 16 to 19 years old, due to their age and status. Adolescent mothers experience more pregnancy and delivery problems and have less healthy babies overall than do older mothers (Phipps and Sowers, 2002). These differences seem to be decreasing in recent studies, perhaps due to increased health services for young mothers. Teenage mothers who are 15 years old and younger and have not enough prenatal care tend to also have a low weight gain which is less than 20 pounds during their pregnancy (Phipps and Sowers, 2002). This is very dangerous for the teenage mother and for the child because it can lead the mother into getting sick, and it can lead the baby to death. New work indicates that the health outcomes are related more to the poverty and lack of prenatal care common to pregnant teenage girls. Teenage pregnancy is also linked to other problematic adolescent behaviors such as alcohol and drug use (Phipps and Sowers, 2002) . .
             Other important effects of pregnancy and childbirth are that young mothers is often the cessation of education. Studies done by the National Center for Research in Vocational Education, the Children Defense Fund, the Hotz, McElroy and Sanders show that about 60% of teenage mothers do not finish school (Smith, Jones, & Hall, 2001).