IMPACTS OF ADOLESCENT PREGNANCY TO THE SOCIETY

Adolescent pregnancy addresses a variety of side consequences, including those related to health, the economics, and self-reliance.

Effects on Economy

Early pregnancy is one of the pressing issues Filipino youths are facing today. The Philippines has one of the highest teenage pregnancy rates among the ASEAN member states despite the decrease of total live births of teenage mothers (aged 10-19) in 2016 (203,085) to 183,000 in 2019. Early childbearing may result in poor health outcomes and may be a threat to the country’s economic growth. Pregnant adolescents are less likely to complete higher education and have lesser ability to earn more income over the course of a lifetime, causing economic losses to the country.

Effects on Health

According to the National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS 2017) of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the percentage of young women who have begun childbearing is lower in urban areas than in rural areas (7% versus 10%). As a result, young women with some primary education and those from the poorest households are more likely to have begun childbearing than young women with higher education levels and those from the wealthiest households.

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“Because as a teenager, you're still growing and changing and learning. Having a child before you've even fully learned geometry seems weird. You haven't even got to live your life yet, and you have to give up all the fun opportunities you might get because you have a baby.”

"Teenagers' reproductive habits may vary depending on social expectations about young pregnancy, but these expectations are notoriously challenging to evaluate."(Marini 1984; Settersten 2004)

Why Teenage/Adolescent Pregnancy is against social norms

According to Neugarten, Moore, and Lowe (1965), age expectations are "woven into the fabric of adult life". There is something that could be referred to as a prescriptive timetable for significant life events (p. 711). Such "age expectations" are group-level assessments of how people should or should not behave, and they serve as social norms (Settersten 2004). The overwhelming view in this situation may be that minors shouldn't become pregnant. When a teen departs from these norms, she faces unfavorable consequences from institutions or other people.

Negative Impacts of Teenage Pregnancy in the Philippines (nnc.gov.ph)

As you have read, adolescent pregnancy is harmful not only to the health of the young woman carrying the child, but also to society as a whole. The following are the negative impacts of adolescent pregnancy in the Philippines:

1. Loss of Government Revenue

In most developing nations, governments plan welfare schemes to take adequate care of teen mothers and their dependent children. As the low-qualified mother cannot get a good job, she completely depends on such welfare schemes to overcome the impending financial distress. As a result, due to the fact that teen mothers cannot afford to pay taxes, the government has to pay for it which results to the government huge loss of revenue.

2. Lack of Financial Support

A teen mother who does not get proper financial support from her parents or friends has to face a severe financial crunch. Therefore, a teen mother has to face extreme difficulty to buy basic items for her newborn baby.

3. Increase Risk of Destitution

In most cases, the biological father abandons the teen mom, and the baby becomes her sole responsibility. Hence, the mother ends up living in poverty and running the risk of imminent destitution. Teenage pregnancy increases the risk of spending the entire life in poverty for both the teen parents and the baby. As fewer teen mom attain proper educational degrees and qualifications, they cannot find suitable and well-paid jobs to improve their financial position. Teenage pregnancy is most of the time linked to the lower annual income of the mother. As a result, 80% of teen mothers have to rely on social welfare schemes planned by the nation.