High school Law

Teenage Pregnancy pregnancy

Please write the argumentative of this.Thank you.

Think back to your teenage years, or for those of you, who are teenagers, think about your life as it is now. This is a time where school occupies a majority of your time and you spend a good amount of your free time out with friends. Your in the early years of your life just thinking and planning for all the success your going to have in the future and everything you aspire to do. At this age, finding out your going to have a child is the most horrifying news for both girls and boys, yet it happens to about 900,000 teenagers in the United States alone each year (Klein, 2005). Teen pregnancy not only affects the teenager herself, but also the child, the families involved, healthcare professionals, educators, and government officials as they try to accommodate and deal with issues that come with teen pregnancy (Klein, 2005). Although the United States has the highest rate of teen pregnancy in the industrialized world, it is a problem all over the globe (Klein, 2005). As drug abuse, teen sex, and alcohol increase worldwide, teen pregnancy is also increasing and will continue to rise over the years (Pros and cons,). Teenage childbearing is a problem. Many of the issues we have in todays society wouldnt be as big of a problem if the number of children born to teenagers were decreased.

Unexpected pregnancy in teens creates socioeconomic issues in the mother, and the father of the child, if he is involved in raising the child. One major affect on the mother is a loss of education. Many teenagers who become pregnant end up dropping out of school because they miss too many classes due to feeling sick or simply because of the way it makes them feel when they get looks from other students (Pros and cons,). The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy reports that only 38 percent of teens that have a child before age 18 have a high school diploma (Teen pregnancy, poverty, 2010). This then leads to financial issues because they do not have the education to qualify for a well paying job. Children are expensive to raise, and as the teen mother and in some cases, the father, attempt to buy all the items the baby needs, they usually run into some money problems. Because of the lack of job opportunity due one or both of the parents dropping out of school, this ultimately leads to financial instability in the parents and the child growing up in poverty. Studies show that there is a 67 percent chance that a child will grow up in poverty if the mother gave birth as a teen, the parents were unmarried when the child was born, and the mother did not receive a high school diploma or a GED (Teen pregnancy, poverty, 2010).

Unplanned childbirth in teens also leads to medical risks and causes problems in the development of the child. Studies show that adolescents younger than 17 years have a higher risk of medical complications involving the mother and child than adult women do (Klein, 2005). Because teen pregnancy is looked down upon by society, many teens who become pregnant are in denial or are scared to tell others, which can lead to some very severe health risks in the child. Low birth weight is very common in children of teen mothers because the mother doesnt gain the amount of weight needed during pregnancy (Teen pregnancy and, 2008). This can lead to organs that are not fully developed which can cause bleeding in the brain, respiratory distress syndrome, and intestinal problems (Teen pregnancy and, 2008). These children are also less likely to receive proper nutrition, healthcare, and cognitive and social stimulation, which may cause them to perform lower academically (Teen pregnancy and, 2008). It has been proven that children of teen mothers have increased risks of developmental delay, academic difficulties, behavioral disorders, substance abuse, early sexual activity, depression, and becoming adolescent parents themselves (Klein, 2005).

Although it may seem like teen pregnancy is only an issue for the mother and her family, it is not. The negative effects of teen pregnancy including, school failure, crime, poverty, child abuse, and neglect are all social problems that effect everyone and would decrease dramatically if teen pregnancy werent occurring (Linking teen pregnancy, 2010) Teenagers having children is not only costly to the family, but it also costs the public sector about 9 billion dollars each year because of healthcare costs, increased welfare costs, increased prison costs and lost tax revenue (Linking teen pregnancy, 2010). So, essentially every taxpayer has a part in paying for all these children who are born to teenagers.

As I have talked about throughout my paper, teen pregnancy is a big problem in society today. There are several prevention and awareness programs out there, but with teen pregnancy continuing to rise around the world, I believe that more can be done to decrease this number. Teen pregnancy causes many problems in families, such as low education, financial issues, poverty, and developmental delay and issues in the children. Children, who grow up in poverty with a teen mother or parents, are more likely to be teen mothers themselves and also grow up in poverty (Teen pregnancy and, 2008). This is an issue because it is one big cycle that seems to keep growing larger, and if further steps are not taken to try and help try and prevent it, that will greatly affect future generations and families to come