Global incidence of teenage pregnancy

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Industrialized and developing countries have distinctly different rates of teenage pregnancy. In developed regions, such as North America and Western Europe, teen parents tend to be unmarried and adolescent pregnancy is seen as a social issue. By contrast, teenage parents in developing countries are often married, and their pregnancy may be welcomed by family and society. However, in these societies, early pregnancy may combine with malnutrition and poor health care to cause medical problems. A report by Save the Children found that, annually, 13 million children are born to women under age 20 worldwide. More than 90% of these births occur to women living in developing countries. Complications of pregnancy and childbirth are the leading cause of mortality among women between the ages of 15 and 19 in such areas, as they are the leading cause of mortality among older women.

Contents 1 Africa 2 Asia 3 Europe 3.1 United Kingdom 3.2 Netherlands 3.3 Nordic countries 3.4 Mediterranean countries 4 North America 5 References

[edit] Africa

The highest rate of teenage pregnancy in the world — 143 per 1,000 girls aged 15-19 years — is in sub-Saharan Africa. ^[1] Women in Africa, in general, get married at much earlier ages than women elsewhere — leading to earlier pregnancies. In Niger, according to the Health and Demographic Survey in 1992, 47% of women aged 20-24 were married before 15 and 87% before 18. 53% of those surveyed also had given birth to a child before the age of 18. ^[2]

Teenage birth rates in African countries (2002): ^[3]

Country	Birth rate*	Country	Birth rate*
Tunisia	7	Libya	7
Morocco	25	Egypt	47
Rwanda	50	South Africa	66
Kenya	78	Senegal	86
Zimbabwe	92	Nigeria	103
Eritrea	115	Tanzania	120
Zambia	145	Mali	191
Somalia	213	Niger	233

* per 1000 women aged 15-19

A Save the Children report identified 10 countries where motherhood carried the most risks for young women and their babies. Of these, 9 were in sub-Saharan Africa, and Niger, Liberia, and Mali were the nations where girls were the most at-risk. In the 10 highest-risk nations, more than one in six teenage girls between the ages of 15 to 19 gave birth annually, and nearly one in seven babies born to these teenagers died before the age of one year. ^[4]

[edit] Asia

Teenage birth rates in Asian countries (2002): ^[3]

Country	Birth rate*	Country	Birth rate*
South Korea	2	Japan	4
China	5	Malaysia	18
Iran	33	Kazakhstan	45
India	45	Thailand	49
Pakistan	50	United Arab Emirates	51
Mongolia	54	Indonesia	55
Cambodia	60	Afghanistan	111
Nepal	117	Bangladesh	117
Qatar	69

* per 1000 women aged 15-19

In the Indian subcontinent, premarital sex is uncommon, but early marriage sometimes means adolescent pregnancy. The rate of early marriage is higher in rural regions than it is in urbanized areas. Fertility rates in South Asia range from 71 to 119 births per 1000 women aged 15-19. 30% of all Indian induced abortions are performed on women who are under 20.

Other parts of Asia have shown a trend towards increasing age at marriage for both sexes. In South Korea and Singapore, marriage before age 20 has all but disappeared, and, although the occurrence of sexual intercourse before marriage has risen, rates of adolescent childbearing are low at 4 to 8 per 1000. The rate of early marriage and pregnancy has decreased sharply in Indonesia and Malaysia; however, it remains high in comparison to the rest of Asia.

Surveys from Thailand have found that a significant minority of unmarried adolescents are sexually active. Although premarital sex is considered normal behavior for males, particularly with prostitutes, it is not always regarded as such for females. Most Thai youth reported that their first sexual experience, whether within or outside of marriage, was without contraception. The adolescent fertility rate in Thailand is relatively high at 60 per 1000. 25% of women admitted to hospitals in Thailand for complications of induced abortion are students. The Thai government has undertaken measures to inform the nation's youth about the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases and unplanned pregnancy.

According to the World Health Organization, in several Asian countries including Bangladesh and Indonesia, a large proportion (26-37%) of deaths among female adolescents can be attributed to maternal causes. ^[5]

[edit] Europe

Teenage birth and abortion rates in European countries (1998):^[6]

Country	Birth rate*	Abortion rate*	% married teenage mothers
Switzerland	5.5	(not available)	61%
Netherlands	6.2	3.9	35%
Sweden	6.5	17.7	18%
Italy	6.6	6.7	55%
Spain	7.9	4.9	40%
Denmark	8.1	15.4	23%
France	9.3	13.2	15%
Belgium	9.9	5.2	42%
Greece	11.8	1.3	80%
Germany	13.1	5.3	39%
Czech Republic	16.4	12.4	47%
Ireland	18.7	(not available)	4%
Poland	18.7	(not available)	60%
Portugal	21.1	(not available)	45%
Hungary	26.5	30.2	36%
United Kingdom	30.8	21.3	10%

* per 1000 women aged 15-19

The overall trend in Europe since 1970 has been a decreasing total fertility rate, an increase in the age at which women experience their first birth, and a decrease in the number of births among teenagers. However, in the past, teenage mothers in Europe tended to be married, and therefore were less likely to be perceived as a social issue. Some countries, such as Greece and Poland, retain a traditional model of births to married mothers in their late teens.

The rates of teenage pregnancy may vary widely within a country. For instance, in the United Kingdom, the rate of adolescent pregnancy in 2002 was as high as 100.4 per 1000 among young women living in the London Borough of Lambeth, and as low as 20.2 per 1000 among residents in the Midlands local authority area of Rutland. In Italy, the teenage birth rate in central regions is only 3.3 per 1,000, but, in the Mezzogiorno it is 10.0 per 1000.

Teenage birth is often associated with alcohol and drugs. Across 13 nations in the European Union, women who gave birth as teenagers are twice as likely to be living in poverty, in comparison to those who wait until they are over 20. ^[6]

[edit] United Kingdom

Main article: Teenage pregnancy and sexual health in Britain

The U.K, which has the highest teenage birth rate in Europe, also has a higher rate of abortion than most European countries. 80% of young Britons reported engaging in sexual intercourse while still in their teens, although a half of those under 16, and one-third of those between 16 to 19, said they did not use a form of contraception during their first encounter. Less than 10% of British teen mothers are married and a relatively high proportion of them are under the age of 16. Adolescent pregnancy is viewed as a matter of concern by both the British government and the British press.

[edit] Netherlands

In contrast, the Netherlands has a low rate of births and abortions among teenagers. Compared to countries with higher teenage birth rates, the Dutch have a higher average age at first intercourse and increased levels of contraceptive use (including the "double Dutch" method of using both a hormonal contraception method and a condom).

[edit] Nordic countries

Nordic countries, such as Denmark and Sweden, also have low rates of teenage birth, but their abortion rates are higher than those of the Netherlands.

[edit] Mediterranean countries

In some countries, such as Italy and Spain, the low rate of adolescent pregnancy may be attributed to traditional values and social stigmatization. These countries also have low overall fertility rates. Portugal, however, has a relatively high percentage of teenage pregnancy.

[edit] North America

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The teenage birth rate in United States was 42 births per 1,000 women aged 15–19 in 2002^[7], the highest in the developed world.^[6] If all pregnancies, including those which end in abortion or miscarriage, are taken into account, then the total rate in 2000 was 75.4 pregnancies per 1,000 girls. Nevada and the District of Columbia have the highest teen pregnancy rates in the U.S., while North Dakota has the lowest. ^[7] 95% of teenage pregnancies in the U.S. are unintended; approximately one third end in abortion, one third end in spontaneous miscarriage, and one third will continue their pregnancy and keep their baby. ^[8]

However, the trend is decreasing: in 1990, the birth rate was 61.8, and the pregnancy rate 116.9 per thousand. This decline has manifested across all racial groups, although teenagers of African-American and Hispanic descent retain a higher rate, in comparison to that of European-Americans and Asian-Americans. The Guttmacher Institute attributed about 25% of the decline to abstinence and 75% to the effective use of contraceptives. ^[7]

Within the United States teen pregnancy is often brought up in political discourse. The goal to limit teen pregnancy is shared by Republicans and Democrats, though avenues of reduction are usually different. Many Democrats cite teen pregnancy as proof of the continuing need for access to birth control and abortion, while Republicans often cite a need for returning to conservative values.^{[citation needed]}

An inverse correlation has been noted between teen pregnancy rates and the quality of education in a state. A positive correlation, albeit weak, appears between a city's teen pregnancy rate and its average summer night temperature, especially in the Southern U.S. (Savageau, compiler, 1993-1995).

Throughout the U.S., statistical studies show that the average age of the father of a child at birth is inversely related to the age of the mother, if the mother is less than 16 years of age. [Formula: m < 16 --> 1/f o< m , where m = mother's age and f = father's age.] This proportionality is less pronounced in Hispanic populations of the U.S., and in Canada, than it is in the U.S. general population. This explains the common observation that groups and support networks for teen fathers typically contain a greater proportion of Hispanics than do similar groups for teen mothers.^{[citation needed]}

The number of births in the U.S. in which the father is younger than 18 and the mother is older is a small percent, and when the father's age is lower than 16, the above equation is reversed. As the age of the father decreases below 16, the average age of the mother decreases as well, although this decrease is low in absolute-value of slope.^{[citation needed]}

The Canadian teenage birth rate in 2002 was 16 per 1000 ^[3] and the teenage pregnancy rate was 33.9. According to data from Statistics Canada, the Canadian teenage pregnancy rate has trended towards a steady decline for both younger (15-17) and older (18-19) teens in the period between 1992-2002. ^[9] Canada's highest teen pregnancy rates occur in small towns located in rural parts of peninsular Ontario .

The courts of Canada can legally give judicial marriage consent if the ages of both partners exceed 14, and in the case of pregnancy this consent is often granted. Two American states, Kansas and Georgia, until recently had laws allowing unlimited age of marriage in the case of pregnancy, but these laws are in the process of amendment after three legal cases.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] References