Teen Pregnancy: Get the Facts

Pregnancy, whether accidental or not, is a complicated, emotional event for the pregnant person and everyone else involved. Raising a child is a huge commitment that requires enormous amounts of time, effort, and money.

For teenagers, pregnancy presents particularly difficult obstacles. At a time when most other people their age are still dependent on their parents for money, food, and shelter, pregnant teens are suddenly faced with adult responsibilities. They must consider the changes a baby will bring, including the ways it will affect their plans for school, a career, and relationships.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the teen birth rate has dropped every year since 2009. In 2021, the most recent year for which data is available, 146,973 babies were born to women aged 15–19 years. This number is a drop of 67 percent from 2007. According to the 2022 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, fewer high school students reported sexual activity in 2021 than in the previous 10 years, dropping from 47 percent in 2011 to 30 percent in 2021. However, teen birth rates in the U.S. are still higher than in most other developed countries, including Canada. Between 2014 and 2021, the rate of births to teens aged 15 to 19 in Canada was more than cut in half, from 10.3 births to 4.9 births per 1,000 females. In the United States, there were 16.82 births per 1,000 teens in 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Why are teen pregnancy rates lower in Canada? Experts believe that Canadian young women are becoming better informed about sex education, and are also focused on education and career goals rather than having children at an early age.

The decline in teen births is common to most industrialized societies and represents long-term shifts in the economy and gender roles. During the Baby Boom following the end of World War II, American society was very different from what it is today. Women who got married started families in their teens and twenties. In 1957, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median age of women who got married was 20.3, meaning roughly half of married women got married while they were still teenagers. Teen birth rates peaked at 96.3 births per 1,000 females in 1957, according to the Pew Research Center, but an estimated 85 percent of those teen mothers were married. That year, only 35 percent of adult women worked outside the home, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and only 5.8 percent of American women graduated college, according to Statista. During the Baby Boom, many more women married and started families while still in their teens.

Society has changed greatly since the mothers of baby boomers gave birth. The U.S. economy has changed from a manufacturing economy to an information-based service economy. In 2021, there were ten times as many jobs in the service sector as there were jobs in manufacturing, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Women have filled many of those jobs: in 2019, 57 percent of American women were employed outside the home. Women are also staying in school longer: in 2020, 41 percent of American women had a college degree, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In 2022, the median age at which women got married (for those who marry) was 28.2. Today, many more women who get married and have children are doing so after getting an education and starting a career. This is the main reason why there are far fewer teen mothers, and also why, according to Pew Research, only 11 percent of teen mothers are married.

As is often said, education is the most effective form of birth control. One of the reasons for the high rate of teen pregnancy is that many teens do not have enough information about sex, birth control, and how their reproductive systems function. Often they are afraid or embarrassed to ask questions. The first step in preventing unwanted pregnancies is to understand how your body works.

Puberty

When you reach the age of eleven or twelve, your body starts to change. You may feel some of these changes, but you might not be able to see their effects right away. This time of physical and emotional change is called puberty.

During puberty your glands begin to produce hormones—chemicals that make you look and feel different. Hormones are responsible for most of the physical and emotional changes typical of puberty. For boys, hormones lead to the production of sperm, the deepening of the voice, and the growth of facial hair. For girls, breast development and the beginning of menstruation (the monthly period) are some of the changes that occur during puberty.

The Male Reproductive System

Male Reproductive System View Larger Image LifeArt image © 2006 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved

The male body produces sperm, which swim in a thick, cloudy white liquid. This combination of liquid and sperm is called semen. When a male becomes aroused, his penis fills with blood and becomes erect (hard and straight). If he is fully stimulated, he has an orgasm and ejaculates (releases) semen. The average ejaculation contains 500 million sperm—only one of which is needed to make a female pregnant.

Semen usually leaves the male body during ejaculation, but it is possible for some to leak out of the erect penis even without an orgasm. Pregnancy can occur without intercourse if semen comes near the vaginal area and sperm manage to enter the vagina and swim up into the uterus. While this is unlikely, it is possible. Because the penis releases a small amount of sperm-containing pre-ejaculatory fluid before orgasm, a female can also become pregnant even if the penis is pulled out of the vagina before climax. That’s why if you decide to have sex, it is important to use some form of birth control, preferably a condom, in conjunction with another form, from the first moment of sexual contact.

The condom is a rubber sheath that covers the penis and creates a barrier between it and the vagina. Condoms prevent semen from leaking into the vagina. They protect against pregnancy as well as sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) such as acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Other than abstinence (choosing not to have sex), condoms, when used properly, offer the best protection against pregnancy and disease of all forms of birth control. While the birth control pill offers better protection against pregnancy, it does nothing to prevent STD infection.

Traditionally, condoms have been made from latex. But you may have seen newer polyurethane condoms too. Some people claim that polyurethane condoms are more sensitive than latex ones because they are thinner in texture. But studies show that polyurethane condoms are not as effective in protecting against pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. Polyurethane condoms are more likely to slip off the penis during withdrawal and also to break. The bottom line is, unless you are among the small number of people allergic to latex, latex condoms are a far safer option.

The Female Reproductive System

Female Reproductive System View Larger Image © Superstock, Inc.

A female is born with a certain number of ova, or eggs. These are stored in the body’s two ovaries. During puberty the menstrual cycle begins, and these eggs begin to mature. Each month, one egg is released from the ovary. This process is called ovulation. The egg then travels through one of the two fallopian tubes located on either side of the uterus. If the egg is not met by a sperm, the unfertilized egg will break down. Each month, the lining of the uterus thickens in preparation for carrying a baby. If the egg is not fertilized, the lining is pushed out of the body along with the unfertilized egg. This is called menstruation.

However, if sperm should enter the female’s body while the egg is in the fallopian tube, a single sperm can fertilize the egg. This is known as the moment of conception. The fertilized egg then drops into the uterus. If it successfully implants itself in the wall of the uterus, the egg will begin to grow and develop. The female is now pregnant. If the pregnancy is brought to term and all goes well, a baby will be born about nine months later.