CONSEQUENCES/IMPLICATION OF TENAGE PREGNANCY
Depression may arise when a teenager is pregnant. The teen may fall into a depression while trying to handle the emotions a pregnancy creates and all of the possibly negative feedback about the pregnancy from friends and family.
The fluctuating hormones that a pregnancy causes may also prompt depression. Uncertainty about the future may arise when a teen is pregnant. A teen may feel she does not have enough knowledge to be a mother. She may also have fears about how having a baby will impact her own life and dreams for the future.
A teenager may suffer an emotional crisis if she becomes pregnant and does not want the baby. This crisis may lead to rash behavior such as attempting to self-abort the baby or a suicide attempt.
Consequences of Teen Pregnancy
- Keeping the baby
- Putting the baby up for adoption
- Aborting the fetus
The main reasons given for abortion are as follows;
- Concern over how the baby would change life
- Level of maturity concerns
- Financial concerns
- Emotional Crisis
- Worries about Future
- Delayed Education
- Smoking & Drugs
- Exhaustion
- Depression
- Neglect of Baby
- Trouble with Finances
EVALUATION
- State three causes of teenage pregnancy
- State five reasons for abortion
Effect of drugs and self medications during pregnancy
If you’re pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant and want a healthy baby, then it’s very important to avoid drug use during pregnancy. Illegal drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, and methamphetamine aren’t the only drugs that are harmful to fetal development;
Commonly used over-the-counter medicines, along with substances such as caffeine and alcohol, can have lasting effects on an unborn child. It’s possible that you may not have a serious or long-lasting problem after using drugs. But the same is not always true for a fetus. Drug-using mothers often give birth to “drug babies.” These children have a host of developmental problems.
EFFECT OF DRUG ABUSE ON PREGNANCY
The effects of substance abuse during pregnancy may be classified into three categories: effects on the mother, effects on the course of pregnancy and delivery, and effects on the fetus, newborn, and developing child. Fetal complications associated with maternal substance abuse include placenta previa, abruptio placentae, premature rupture of membranes, spontaneous abortion, intrauterine growth retardation, premature delivery, birth defects, and neonatal and long-term developmental effects.
CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCE OF BIRTH DEFECT
Birth Defect Causes 1: May Include Alcohol and Cigarettes. Birth defect causes vary, from alcohol to cigarettes to pharmaceutical medicines to illegal drugs, all of which can affect how a baby develops in the womb during pregnancy. Scientific studies have shown that exposure to dangerous chemicals, particularly during the first trimester, can significantly alter normal development and result in abnormal deformities in the heart, limbs, lungs, brain, and more. Following are a few more details on four of the major birth defect causes.
Birth Defect Cause 2: Prescription Medications
A child that is exposed to the chemicals in prescribed drugs may have a greater chance of being born with medicine birth defects. Depending on the situation, the medicine birth defects may range from mild to severe, and sometimes may require lifelong medical treatment. Potential medicine birth defects include:
- Cleft lip
- Cleft palate
- Limb deformities
- Congenital heart defects
- Spina bifida
- Neural tube birth defects
Birth Defect Cause 3: Illicit Drugs
Illegal street drugs including marijuana, methamphetamines, cocaine, and heroine are just a few substances that can lead to street drug birth defects. While in the womb, the fetus shares blood and nutrients with the mother, and so may be exposed to ingested drugs when the substances enter the placenta.
Some of the potential street drugs birth defects include the following:
- Reduced oxygen supply to the baby
- Restricted growth
- Small head size
- Drug dependency at birth
- Difficulty feeding
- Drug withdrawal symptoms
- Muscle spasms
- Tremors
- Brain damage
- Lack of muscle control
- Learning disabilities
Birth Defect Cause 4: Alcohol
If alcohol is consumed during pregnancy, the fetus may develop adverse health conditions, typically referred to as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASDs). Of the FASDs, the most threatening to an unborn child is fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) – the effects of which can cause mental and physical harm.
The exposure of a child to alcohol during fetal development can also lead to other health complications including the following:
- Birth defects potentially affecting the heart, brain and other organs
- Vision or hearing problems
- Premature birth
- Underweight at birth
- Learning disabilities (including mental retardation)
- Sleeping and sucking problems
- Speech and language delays
- Behavioral problems
EVALUATION
- What are the effects of alcohol in pregnancy?
- Mention causes and consequences of birth defect.
MYTHS AND FACTS ABOUT TENAGE PREGNANCY
Pregnancy: Myths and Facts
Myth: I can’t get pregnant if I have my period.
Fact: You can get pregnant if you have vaginal sex while you have your period. Sperm can survive inside of you anywhere from a day to almost a week, which means that the sperm could still be waiting for an egg to fertilize when you ovulate. If you decide to have sex while you have your period, you should still use birth control
And you should always use a condom since it is the only effective protection we have against sexually transmitted infections (STI’s). STI’s don’t care if you have your period or not, they can be passed on to you at anytime so it’s best to protect yourself every time you have sex. If you think you may be pregnant, take a home pregnancy test right away. Ultra sensitive home pregnancy tests can give you results as quickly as six to eight days after conception.
Myth: I can’t get pregnant if he doesn’t ejaculate inside of me.
Fact: You can get pregnant if your partner ejaculates inside your vagina or on or near your vulva (this is your external genitals including the opening to your vagina). There is also something called pre-ejaculate which is a small amount of fluid that contains thousands of sperm. It is called pre-ejaculate because your partner releases it before he actually ejaculates. Because of pre-ejaculate, the withdrawal method (when your partner pulls out before he climaxes) is not a reliable birth control method.
Myth: I can’t get pregnant if he doesn’t put his penis inside of me.
Fact: Pregnancy can occur when your partner ejaculates or pre-ejaculates near or on your vulva. Even if you and your partner do not engage in vaginal sex, there is still a chance of getting pregnant if there is naked body contact. So use birth control, like a condom, which will also help to protect you from STI’s.
Myth: I can’t get pregnant the first time I have sex.
Fact: You can get pregnant any and every time you have sex, it doesn’t matter if it is your first time or not. Plus, females are the most fertile when they are teenagers and in their early 20’s, so always use a reliable form of birth control.
FINDING HELP
As the incidence of substance use among women of reproductive age continues to increase, substance abuse during pregnancy is a growing health issue because it affects the future generations of our country. Because substance abuse during pregnancy is often difficult to detect,
- the physician should include a detailed substance abuse history in every new patient encounter, with follow-up questions performed during subsequent visits.
- Once detected, substance abuse during pregnancy confronts the physician with issues regarding management, treatment, and potential maternal, fetal, and pregnancy-related complications, yet also provides the physician with a unique opportunity for intervention at a time when the woman may be most amenable to change.
- Many management and treatment options exist with the ultimate goal of abstinence and should be designed to meet the needs and address the concerns of the individual.
- By increasing the awareness of substance abuse during pregnancy among the medical community, physicians may better recognize and address this problem, thus improving the overall health of this population.
GENERAL EVALUATION
- State three causes of teenage pregnancy
- State five reasons for abortion
- What are the effects of alcohol in pregnancy
- Mention the causes and consequences of birth defect
- State five health defects of drugs during pregnancy.
WEEKEND ASSIGNMENT
- ——— may arise when a teenager is pregnant. A. Depression B. Joy C. Education
- complications
- The fluctuating ——— that a pregnancy causes may also prompt depression.
- hormones B. cell C. organ D. chromosomes
- The effects of substance abuse during pregnancy may be classified into ———-categories A. three B. two C. four D. five
- A child that is exposed to the chemicals in prescribed drugs may have a greater chance of being born with medicine ——— defects. A. birth B. coming C. discharging D. procreation.
- If alcohol is consumed during pregnancy, the fetus may develop adverse health conditions, typically referred to as ——— alcohol spectrum disorder (FASDs). A. fetal B. chemicals C. medicine D. embryonic
THEORY
- State five health complications exposing a child to alcohol during fetal development can also lead to .
- State five health defects of drugs during pregnancy.
See also