According to the National Conference of State Legislatures roughly one in four girls will be pregnant at least once before the age of 20. Imagine your three best friends. Now imagine one of them being pregnant and how life changing that would be for you. Teenage pregnancy is not a joke or something to be taken lightly. Teenage pregnancy costs society money. This money could be used for public schools, the upkeep of public roads,etc. But instead it is used for welfare programs to maintain these teenagers and their babies. The majority of teen moms never finish their education and are forced to take low paying jobs and have to rely on public assistance programs.(CDC.gov) According to CDC.gov “in 2010 teenage pregnancy and childbirth accounted for at least 9.4 billion [dollars] in costs to U.S taxpayers”. This cost comes from increased health care, foster care, and incarceration rates among children of teen parents. 9.4 billion dollars were snatched from the pockets of American families trying to support themselves because of the lack of financial stability many teen mothers have. This is unacceptable.(CDC.gov) Many teenage pregnancies are accidents or just complete naivete. In a story on teenvogue.com a teen mother recalls “I wasn’t on birth control and we weren’t using condoms. We actually thought that one of us was probably infertile because I never got pregnant.” This kind of ignorance to the facts and blatant disregard of using safe sex practices is what costs our economy so much in the long run. Over half of all mothers on welfare had their first child as a teenager and almost ½ of all teen mothers begin receiving welfare within five years of the birth of their first child (According to Tulsa Campaign to Prevent Pregnancy). Welfare is a great program for those who need it and count on it but the amount of teen mothers that need it is staggering. It puts a great stress on this system and the government’s ability to help everyone sufficiently. The medical costs of just delivering a baby can cost from about $10,000 to $15,000. Medicaid pays for more than two-thirds of deliveries among teenagers according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information. This cost includes delivery, tests, and prenatal care visits. Many new mothers can’t afford this cost meaning the money doesn’t go back to the government.(National Center for Biotechnology Information) Teen mothers often struggle financially, they can fall behind on bills and rent. They can end up getting their homes taken away or being evicted from their apartments and become homeless. If a woman doesn’t work the money the government provides is not enough to pay rent, utilities, buy food, and pay for transportation as well as other daily necessities. If they do work they may have to pay for child care which can cost anywhere from 3,000-20,000 dollars a year (teenhealthfx.com). Babies of teen parents are not only expensive on society but also on the individual or couple raising the baby. For just the first year of a baby’s life the average cost of caring for it is $10,158 and the average cost of raising a baby through the age of 17 is 170,460 (pressdemocrat.com). A baby is not only a huge emotional responsibility but also a huge financial responsibility. Before having a baby couples need to determine if they can provide for a baby and with a surprise teenage pregnancy the saving and planning doesn’t happen. Teenage pregnancy also has an immense strain on the women and the baby. Having a baby when you’re not financially or emotionally ready for a baby causes immense stress on the women or couple raising the baby. Also, teenagers have rocky relationships so the loss of boyfriends and friends can cause a teenage mom to feel isolated and alone. Not only does teenage pregnancy cause stress but it also causes health risks and consequences. Pregnant teens are at an increased risk for having pregnancy-related complications; premature birth, high blood pressure, low birth weight babies, and postpartum depression. (WebMD) This is because they find out about their pregnancy later causing them to not be able to get the prenatal vitamins and support the baby needs. And pregnant teens are more likely to engage in binge drinking and drug use early in their pregnancies.(samhsa.gov The TEDS Report) When a baby is inside of you it grows and develops and relies on the mother for food and nutrients. However as a teenager your body has not totally finished developing therefore there can be some health risks. For example according to the national institute of health the unborn baby’s need to develop its skeleton may compete with the young mother’s need for calcium to build her own bones. This could compromise her ability to achieve optimal bone mass that will help protect her from osteoporosis later in life. Therefore teenage mothers may be at especially high risk for bone loss during pregnancy and for osteoporosis later in life.(nih.gov National Institute of Health) While the physical health factors are big so are the emotional effects of having a baby as a teenager.The relationship between the teen mother and father can be severely strained by the pregnancy. Teen mothers and teen fathers can become disconnected during this time. Teen fathers have a choice to stay with the mother or leave and cut ties on the relationship. Another emotional strain on the mother can be what other teens are saying about the pregnancy. Many teen moms find it hard to connect with their peers after they become pregnant. Normal teen girls are going shopping for dresses for prom or new shoes and teen moms have to shop for cribs and bottles and onesies. This can cause a disconnect. One teen mother says, “There are so many changes from being free to go anywhere, and now not being able to. Not being able to go on holiday. Not being able to go out with [my friends] all the time.” (b4udecide.com) Some teenagers believe that having a baby will be like having a doll. They believe that having a baby will be fun and give them something to dress up and play with. However, babies are not dolls you can’t put the babies back in their box when you’re doing playing with them. Babies require tremendous sacrifices that teeangers shouldn’t have to deal with so early in life. Also many teen mothers are ridiculed for their pregnancy and choose to either drop out of school or go to special schools designed for teen mothers. These teens do not pursue the idea of college or higher education because they cannot handle the emotional cost of teen pregnancy while trying to go to school. As the children of teen mothers grow up some of the negative outcomes of teen childbearing can weigh on the children of teen mothers. They can be less prepared to enter the school system and therefore score lower on measures of school readiness. They are 50% more likely to repeat a grade, less likely to complete high school, and have lower performance on standardized tests. Being a child resulting from teenage pregnancy can have consequences that will stick with the child for the rest of their life. (The Tulsa Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy) Also being a mother at such a young age and being forced to take on so much responsibility can cause repercussions. Studies done by the CDC show teenage pregnancy takes away the feeling of childhood causing more reckless and childish behavior later in life due to the lost childhood. This could mean unstable relationships, a disregard for the rules, etc. These will all cause instability in the child’s life. (CDC.gov) Having a child as a teenager hinders dreams of going to college, moving away, finding yourself, travelling the world, etc. Things teens want to do when they finish high school. Everything from there on out is about the baby’s happiness and what would be best for the baby. The baby’s priorities become first and the parent’s priorities become second. It takes away your freedom, it takes away your future. Having a baby is a beautiful thing when you’re ready and prepared for it. Having a baby is supposed to be the happiest time of your life, you’re getting ready to start a family and are excited for the future. As a teenager you should be allowed to be a kid, not have to take care of one.
"MedlinePlus - Health Information from the National Library of Medicine." MedlinePlus Trusted Health Information for You. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2017. "The Office of Adolescent Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services." Office of Adolescent Health. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2017. "Teen Pregnancy: Medical Risks and Realities." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2017. Panchamsingh, Janella. "I Was a Teen Mom!" The Huffington Post. The Huffington Post, 04 Apr. 2016. Web. 11 Mar. 2017. National Institutes of Health. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2017 "Costs and Consequences of Teen Pregnancy ." The National Campaign To Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2017. Amy. "Amy’s Story." B4uDecide.ie. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2017. "HOME." Prevent Teen Pregnancy. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2017. "Teen Pregnancy: Medical Risks and Realities." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2017.