Also called: Also called: Adolescent pregnancy
Most teenagers don't plan to get pregnant, but many do. Teen pregnancies carry extra health risks to the mother and the baby. Often, teenagers don't receive timely prenatal care, and they have a higher risk for pregnancy-related high blood pressure and its complications. Risks for the baby include premature birth and a low birthweight.
If you're a pregnant teenager, you can help yourself and your baby by
- Taking your prenatal vitamins for your health and to prevent some birth defects
- Avoiding smoking, alcohol and drugs
- Using a condom, if you are still having sex, to prevent sexually transmitted diseases that could hurt your baby
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Having a Healthy Pregnancy(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/girls/pregnancy.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/sexual/pregnancy_esp.html
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Especially for Teens: Having a Baby(American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - http://www.acog.org/publications/patient_education/bp103.cfm
Also available in Spanish http://www.acog.org/publications/patient_education/sp103.cfm
- Teen Pregnancy Boosts Girls' Risk of Getting Fat(04/09/2009, Reuters Health) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_82775.html
- JAMA Patient Page: How Do I Know If I'm Pregnant?(American Medical Association) - Links to PDF - http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/286/14/1794.pdf
- Ten Tips for Parents to Help Their Children Avoid Teen Pregnancy(National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy) - http://www.thenationalcampaign.org/resources/10Tips.aspx
- When Children Have Children(American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry) - http://www.aacap.org/page.ww?name=When+Children+Have+Children§ion=Facts+for+Families
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When Your Teen Is Having a Baby(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/talk/teen_pregnancy.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/parent/en_espanol/padres/teen_pregnancy_esp.html
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Can a Girl Get Pregnant If She Has Sex during Her Period?(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/girls/sex_during_period.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/sexual/sex_during_period.html
- Preventing Unplanned and Teen Pregnancy: Why It Matters(National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy) - http://www.thenationalcampaign.org/why-it-matters/
- Talking Back(National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy) - http://www.thenationalcampaign.org/parents/talking_back.aspx
- Tool Kit for Teen Care: Pregnancy Options for Adolescents(American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - http://www.medem.com/medlb/article_detaillb.cfm?article_ID=ZZZR1JN53TD&sub_cat=12
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Pregnancy in Adolescence
(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Pregnancy+in+Adolescence%22
- With One Voice 2007: America's Adults and Teens Sound Off About Teen Pregnancy(National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy) - Large PDF file - http://www.thenationalcampaign.org/resources/pdf/pubs/WOV2007_fulltext.pdf
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: Trends in sexual experience, contraceptive use, and teenage childbearing: 1992-2002. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19380087&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Longitudinal study of growth and adiposity in parous compared with... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19349564&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Advancing reproductive health of young people in the European region. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19301500&tool=MedlinePlus
- Teenage Pregnancy -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=pregnancy+in+adolescence[majr]+AND+english[la]+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt]+OR+case+reports[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- ACOG's Physician Directory(American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - http://www.acog.org/member-lookup/disclaimer.cfm
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March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation - http://www.marchofdimes.com/
Also available in Spanish http://www.nacersano.org/
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National Institute of Child Health and Human Development - http://www.nichd.nih.gov/
- FastStats: Teen Births(National Center for Health Statistics) - http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/teenbrth.htm
- NCHS Data on Teenage Pregnancy(National Center for Health Statistics) - http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/infosheets/infosheet_teen_preg.htm
- PeriStats: Perinatal Statistics(March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation) - http://www.marchofdimes.com/peristats/
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Teenage Pregnancy(March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation) - http://www.marchofdimes.com/professionals/14332_1159.asp
Also available in Spanish http://www.nacersano.org/centro/9388_9919.asp
- Birth Control - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/birthcontrol.html
- High Risk Pregnancy - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/highriskpregnancy.html
- Pregnancy - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/pregnancy.html
- Prenatal Care - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/prenatalcare.html
- Teen Sexual Health - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/teensexualhealth.html
- Children and Teenagers - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/childrenandteenagers.html
- Female Reproductive System - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/femalereproductivesystem.html
- Pregnancy and Reproduction - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/pregnancyandreproduction.html
- Women - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/women.html
The primary NIH organization for research on Teenage Pregnancy is the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development - http://www.nichd.nih.gov/