Lack of Parental Guidance: Most people evade their children from talking about sex.

In some cases, they provide false information

regarding sex and discourage their children to participate in any informative discussion about sex. In some cases, teenage mothers are
not well educated about sex before getting pregnant and thus this leads to lack of communication between the parents and the
children.

2) Adolescent Sexual Behavior: Among the adolescents, peer pressure is a major factor that encourages the teenage boys and girls to
indulge in sexual activities. Early dating, as early as 12 years of age, is another factor that contributes to teen pregnancy.
3) Inadequate Knowledge about Safe Sex: Most adolescents are unaware of safe sex. They probably have no access to the traditional
methods of preventing pregnancy. And the main reason behind is that they are either too embarrassed or fear to seek information
about it.
4) Exploitation by Older Men: This is another major factor that contributes to pregnancy among the teenagers. Those girls who date
older men are more likely to become pregnant before they attain womanhood. Rape, sexual exploitations etc. also takes place that
leads to unwanted pregnancy among teenage girls.

5) Socio Economic Factors: Teenage girls who belong to the poor families are more likely to become pregnant. Researchers have found
that even in the developed countries teenage pregnancy occurs most commonly among the deprived sections.

Overview
Teenage pregnancy is defined as an unintended pregnancy during adolescence. Approximately 750,000 of 15- to 19-year-olds become
pregnant each year, according to The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, though many teenagers do not believe that
they will get pregnant if they engage in sexual activity.
Peer Pressure
During adolescence, teenagers often feel pressure to make friends and fit in with their peers. Many times these teens let their friends
influence their decision to have sex even when they do not fully understand the consequences associated with the act. Teenagers have
sex as a way to appear cool and sophisticated, but in some cases the end result is an unplanned teen pregnancy. The Kaiser Family
Foundation states that more than 29 percent of pregnant teens reported that they felt pressured to have sex, and 33 percent of pregnant
teens stated that they felt that they were not ready for a sexual relationship, but proceeded anyway because they feared ridicule or
rejection.
Absent Parents
Teen girls are more likely to get pregnant if the have limited or no guidance from their parents. Many parents have busy lives that
prevent them from providing the guidance and support that their young teenagers need to make good decisions on issues such as sex,
according to the website Parent Dish. When a teen does not feel that she can talk to her parents about sex either because they forbid sex
talk or because they are not around, she will more than likely turn to friends for direction on whether or not to have sex, resulting in
misinformation and possible teen pregnancy.

Glamorization of Pregnancy
The movie industry and the media contribute to teenage pregnancy by glamorizing teen pregnancy in news stories and movies. Movies
that depict teen pregnancy as something to be desired encourage teens to engage in reckless sexual activity, according to ABC's "Good
Morning America." During adolescence, teens become more focused on their appearance and how their peers perceive them. They want
to be seen as part of the group, so if teen pregnancy is viewed as acceptable in their school or amongst their friends, they may seek to
become pregnant as a way to gain social acceptance.
Lack of Knowledge
Teenagers who are uneducated about sex are more likely to have an unintended pregnancy. Some teens do not fully understand the
biological and emotional aspects associated with having sex, according to DailyRecord.co.uk. These teens may get incorrect information
from friends, videos, sitcoms and/or movies. Many times, teens do not have the knowledge needed to make informed and responsible
decisions about whether or not to engage in sexual activity that can alter their life.
Sexual Abuse or Rape
Teens can become pregnant as a result of sexual abuse or rape. The Guttmacher Institute states that between 43 and 62 percent of teens
acknowledge that they were impregnated by an adult male, and two-thirds report that their babies' fathers are as old as 27.
Approximately 5 percent of all teen births are the result of a rape.
Teenage Drinking
Teen drinking can cause an unexpected pregnancy, according to the website Love to Know. Many teens experiment with drugs and
alcohol. Drinking lowers a teen’s ability to control her impulses, contributing to 75 percent of pregnancies that occur between the ages
14 and 21. Approximately 91 percent of pregnant teens reported that although they were drinking at the time, they did not originally
plan to have sex when they conceived.

Risk factors for sexual activity teens and teen pregnancy include:
Dating at a young age. Teens who begin dating at age 12 have a 91 percent chance of being sexually active as teens, and teens who
begin dating at 13 have a 56 percent chance of teen sexual activity.
Lack of self-discipline, which is required to reach goals, delay gratification, and make choices like waiting to have sex or using a condom
Using alcohol, drugs, or tobacco
Dropping out of school, or not having a commitment to education
Having little social support, such as caring family or friends
Not feeling involved with family, school, or community
Feeling like they have no opportunities, or not recognizing their own potential
Being in an environment where teen pregnancy is common
Living in poverty
Being a victim of sexual abuse
Being the child of a teen mother
Suffering from depression or other mental health problems
Lack of positive role models in their family or their life

Being involved in dating or sexual activity at a young age is a major risk factor for unprotected sex and the potential pregnancies and
STDs that go with that choice. The younger a teen is when he or she first has sex the more likely he or she is to have unprotected sex
resulting in a pregnancy or STD.

Some reasons teens may have sex at a young age are:

Pressure from an older boy or girlfriend to have sex

The media conveys the idea that teen sex is common and acceptable
Teens often do not get good information about sex, relationships, and values from reliable sources, such as parents
For girls, a belief that having sex will give them emotional intimacy
For boys, a belief that having sex will give them higher social status

Teens who feel pressured to have sex because “everyone is doing it” should know that more than half of teens wait until they are older
to have sex.

Some teens want to get pregnant

Many of these teens girls come from lower income groups and don’t expect much from their future. Many also have boyfriends 5 or
more years older than themselves. Their reasons for wanting a baby may vary, but often include:

They think it will keep their boyfriend from leaving them, though most teen mothers do end up being single.
They think the idea of having a baby is romantic.
They believe being a mother will give them a sense of fulfillment.
They don’t see any better options for their future than getting pregnant and dropping out of school, or having a baby seems like an
alternative to finishing school as a mom.

Why teens have unprotected sex

Many unplanned teen pregnancies are the result of unprotected sex. 90 percent of teens having unprotected sex will get pregnant
within a year. Teens may have unprotected sex for several reasons:

They feel like pregnancy and STDs are things that only happen to other people, though each year nearly 1 million teen girls get
pregnant and nearly 10 million teen boys and girls get STDs from unprotected sex.
One or both teens used drugs or alcohol before sex.
They are not emotionally mature enough to make good choices about sex, or don’t have enough self-discipline to wait.
They don’t know the risks of unprotected sex.
They don’t know where to get condoms, or think they are too expensive.
They feel pressured by their partner to have unprotected sex, though a caring partner will never pressure a teen to do anything that
they feel uncomfortable with or that is dangerous like having unprotected sex.

The choices teens make that lead to pregnancy can have many causes, but helping teens to feel that they have value and opportunities,
and teaching them to make goals and exercise self-discipline can be an important factor in helping teens to make wiser choices. Parents
can play a major role by educating their teens about their values and the possible consequences of teen sex and unprotected sex, and
by helping teens to feel involved and cared about.

Where Parents Should Start to Help Prevent Teen Pregnancy

There comes a point where parents should start to help prevent teen pregnancy by taking an initiative to talk to their teens
about safe sex practices and how to prevent pregnancy using birth control and abstinence. Preventing teen pregnancy is a
mission parents should make a priority with their teens.

Whether parents think or know their teens are sexually active or not, there comes a time and place where parents should
start to help prevent teen pregnancy by talking to their teens about safe sexual practices, abstinence, the importance of
using birth control, condoms and more. However, most parents really don't know when is the right time to talk to their teen
about such a serious and important topic. They might be concerned with addressing the topic too early and risk jump
starting their teen's interest in their own sexuality. However, other parents might risk waiting too long to talk to their teen
about making smart sex decisions until it is too late and their teen already has a bad sexual experience, contracts an STD
or winds with an unplanned pregnancy.

When Parents Should Talk to Their Teens:

Parents need to focus on the maturity of their teen before they consider the right time to discuss pregnancy prevention
with their teen. However, this also means that parents need to not underestimate their teens. Unfortunately teens are
learning about sex from their peers and the media in a glamorized fashion at younger and younger ages. This is the reality
and unfortunately there is really no way around it, or to try and force your teen to live in a bubble. Because of this it is
important for parents to discuss the realities of sex, the pressures teens face to engage in sexual behaviors and the risks
they are taking by having sex. Teens are also learning about these things from their peers or the media at much younger
ages. This is why parents can't ignore the tween sex statistics that show teens having sex at younger ages in their teens.
About 13 percent of teens have vaginal sex by the time they reach age 15. While this is still a fairly low number, it does
indicate sex is happening in the early teen years.

Teen Pregnancy Risk Factors:

There are some studies and statistical evidences that show some teens who have past experiences with abuse, sexual
abuse, violence, poverty and are the product of a teen pregnancy are more likely to fall victim to the same cycle and are
likely to become teen parents themselves. That is why, especially parents who were once teen parents, need to expressly
talk about these issues with their teens to help break that cycle. Just because some families are from lower income areas or
financial backgrounds, that does not mean parents shouldn't spend the time to talk to their teens and establish open
communication with them about topics like teen sex and preventing teen pregnancy.

If parents simply take the time to cover all the bases of safe sex ranging from topics like abstinence to birth control
methods like the pill and proper condom use, they are taking that initiative to help crack down on the steadily growing
number of teen pregnancies that occur reach year. About 750,000 teen females in the United States become pregnant each
year. About 59 percent of those pregnancies result in birth while about 27 percent result in abortion, followed by 14
percent that end in miscarriage.

The Talk:
While some parents will choose to take the morality approach and only teach their teens about abstinence and the dangers
of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, it is realistic to expect that some of those teens will venture out and
have sex with a partner(s) anyway. That is why, even though many parents don't want to admit it, it is still important to
discuss birth control options with your teen. Teach them about the hormonal birth control options like the pill as a method
of preventing pregnancy. Condoms are also about 80 percent effective, if used correctly, in helping to prevent pregnancy
and sexually transmitted diseases. Having "the talk" with one's teen is always going to be an intimidating task, however
there comes a time when it is a parent's responsibility to teach their teen about pregnancy and STD prevention to help curb
the growing teen pregnancy rate.

Sources: guttmacher.org

Media and Teen Pregnancy

When it comes to the media and teen pregnancy there can be no question there is a connection. This article explores the
effects of several types of media and their impact on teen pregnancy including television and teen pregnancy, celebrities
and teen pregnancy, and movies and teen pregnancy.

Television and Teen Pregnancy

That there is a connection between sexualized media, specifically television programming, and teen pregnancy has been
known for several years. Glamorization of sex has the effects of encouraging teens to engage in sex earlier, and leads to
less than consistent use of contraception. In addition, the more television with sexual content that teens watch, the more
likely they are to become pregnant in their teens, according to research reported by the Rand Corporation in 2008.

But things have changed since that research was undertaken, with many more explicit references to teen pregnancy, as
well as shows about teens who are engaging in sex as part of the show concept. "The Secret Life of the American Teen," a
scripted show which - whatever it's overarching purpose - is focused on teens having sex, often with multiple partners and
without protection, began airing in July, 2008 on ABC Family, and has proved extremely popular with teenage girls.

"16 and Pregnant," a reality show on MTV, started on June 11, 2009, with the spin-off "Teen Mom" beginning on December
8, 2009, and the spin-off "Teen Mom 2" starting on January 11, 2011. According to a review in the New York Times, the
series seems geared to prove that having a child leads to character development opportunities.

Celebrities and Teen Pregnancy

Recent celebrity pregnancies, including those of Jamie Lynn Spears, Brittany Spears' younger sister, and Bristol Palin,
daughter of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin are well-covered in the media and many tend to glorify teen pregnancy.
The fact that Palin appeared on "Dancing with the Stars" and reportedly receives between $15,000 and $30,000 for
speaking engagements - hardly the typical after effect of a teen pregnancy, and certainly making it much easier for her to
cope with the demands of raising a child than 99.99% of teen parents.

Movies and Teen Pregnancy

The CEO of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, Sarah Brown, said in 2008 in response to
the release of the movie Juno that she believes it makes teen pregnancy seem much easier than it actually is. Juno's
supportive family, her own maturity, and the fact that she had a baby, handed it off, and went back to her teenage life and
her boyfriend, makes it seem that an unplanned teen pregnancy is not such a difficult or disruptive event. In fact, Brown
points out, more than 98% of teens who carry a baby to term keep the baby, and so are in a much different situation than
Juno, facing issues like poverty and loss of educational opportunities for both the baby's mother and the baby's father, if he
chooses to be involved with his child.
Sources

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1855842,00.html

http://tv.nytimes.com/2009/06/11/arts/television/11sixteen.html?_r=1

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2008-03-09-juno-pregnancy-main_N.htm