Karena is 16 years old and pregnant. According to research, what may Karena and her child experience that would not be true for older mothers?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Adolescent pregnancy creates health risks for both the baby and the mother. Infants born to adolescent mothers are more likely to have low birth weights and to have more neurological problems and childhood illnesses than babies born to older mothers. Karena has to guard against developing anemia, and she has to be sure to secure prenatal care early. Good prenatal care can help to prevent low birth weight and premature delivery.

Characteristics of adolescent mothers that have been related to their likelihood of having problems as emerging adults include a history of school problems, delinquency, hard substance use, and mental health problems. Even if she has none of these characteristics, Karena may drop out of school, as is the case with many teenage mothers. Although they often resume their education later in life, adolescent mothers generally do not catch up economically with women who postpone childbearing until their twenties.

Adolescent mothers are also less competent at childrearing and have less realistic expectations of their infants' development than older mothers. Children born to adolescent mothers had lower achievement test scores and more behavioral problems than children born to older mothers.