ED266340 Teenage parenthood is by no means a new social phenomenon. Historically, women have tended to begin childbearing during their teens and early twenties.
Several factors contribute to the current attention focused on teenage pregnancy and parenthood.
From the 1978 figures, only one in six pregnancies concluded as births following marriage, and eight in ten premarital teenage pregnancies were unintended. Teenage Pregnancy Rate Of the 29 million young people between the ages of 13 and 19, approximately 12 million have had sexual intercourse. The number of pregnancies increased among teenagers in all age groups during the 1970s, but among those who were sexually active the pregnancy rate has been declining. Because of increased and more consistent use of contraceptives by teenagers, the rate of pregnancy among them has been increasing more slowly than their rate of sexual activity. About five percent of U. S. teenagers give birth each year.