A number of studies suggest that adolescent mothers experience significantly higher rates of

depression, both prenatally and postpartum, than adult mothers and their nonpregnant peers

(Hodgkinson, 2010). Among adolescent mothers, rates of depression are estimated to be

between 16% and 44%. In contrast, the lifetime prevalence of major depression among

nonpregnant adolescents and adult women is between 5% and 20%. Depression symptoms

among young mothers are also more likely to persist well after the birth of their child (Boden,

2008).

According to Leplatte (2012), teen mothers are also at risk for developing symptoms of

posttraumatic stress disorder, mainly because of their high risk for community and

interpersonal violence exposure. One study found that on average, teenage mothers had

experienced >5 traumatic events, including physical attacks by a partner, neglect, abuse by a

parent, incarceration, and traumatic loss. Almost 50% of the adolescent parents in this study

met full criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder. Although adolescent childbearing is

associated with an elevated risk of adverse mental health outcomes, there is significant

variability in outcomes for individual families. The majority of teen mothers and their children

can have positive outcomes equal to those of their peers who bear children later, particularly

when they are provided with strong social and functional supports (Savio, 2009).
Hodgkinson SC, Colantuoni E, Roberts D, Berg-Cross L, Belcher HM. Depressive symptoms and

birth outcomes among pregnant teenagers. J Pediatr Adolesc Gynecol. 2010;23(1):16

22pmid:19679498

Kessler RC. Epidemiology of women and depression. J Affect Disord. 2003;74(1):5

13pmid:12646294

Boden JM, Fergusson DM, John Horwood L. Early motherhood and subsequent life outcomes. J

Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2008;49(2):151160pmid:18093114

Leplatte D, Rosenblum KL, Stanton E, Miller N, Muzik M. Mental health in primary care for

adolescent parents. Ment Health Fam Med. 2012;9(1):3945pmid:23277797

Savio Beers LA, Hollo RE. Approaching the adolescent-headed family: a review of teen

parenting. Curr Probl Pediatr Adolesc Health Care. 2009;39(9):216233pmid:19857857

Neonatal and infant mortality tend to be higher at both ends of the reproductive
spectrum, i.e., the youngest (less than 20) and the oldest (aged 45-49) age groups.
Teenage mothers also compare poorly with mothers from the older age groups in a
number of reproductive health indicators. For one, they tend to have the shortest birth
intervals of all age groups. Taking into account the fact that their bodies are not yet
ready for the physical demands of childbearing, having closely spaced births exposes
young mothers to further health risks (Natividad, 2013)

Still, having closely spaced births is not necessarily a matter of choice for these young
mothers as implied by the finding from the 2003 and 2008 NDHS and the 2011 FHS that
currently married women aged less than 20 have the highest unmet need for
contraception (Figure 2). For example, in the 2011 FHS, 37 percent of currently married
15-19 year olds had an unmet need for contraception, mostly for spacing of births,
compared to 19 percent for all currently married women. This is an indication that
adolescent mothers are an underserved segment of reproductive health programs and
services.

Josefina Natividad
Population Institute, College of Social Sciences and Philosophy, University of the Philippines,

Diliman, Quezon City you