Infants born to young mothers are more likely to be born prematurely and with low birth weight and to suffer birth complications. Infant and maternal mortality rates are much higher than average for adolescent pregnancies. Second, women who start child-bearing in adolescence are likely to give birth more frequently than those who start at later ages. Third, adolescent pregnancies, and the marriage which precedes them, generally spell the end of education for young women in developing countries. Early childbearing, especially if it shortens education, can also curtail occupational opportunities.
Limited education can rule out jobs that are better paying and less physically arduous.
Several factors that curb adolescent fertility rates are already evident in Latin America. Certainly the economic progress taking place in the region, and the regional move towards privatization, will spur urbanization. Furthermore, exposure and access to consumer goods that come with urban living raise the family's awareness that fewer children means more disposable income for those goods. Fewer children means more disposable income for consumer goods. Educational levels for females are on the rise in Latin America and, since the link between more education for females and decreased fertility is clear, this is likely to curb adolescent fertility rates.