Teenage pregnancy is a serious matter. One in every Filipino women aged 15 to 19 is already a mother or pregnant with her first child, according to the 2013 National Demographic and Health Survey. Early pregnancy is more common among poor households who receives less education. Instead of girls enjoying their adolescence, they experience the life of being a mother to a child. Girls, however, should not shoulder all the blame. Other societal and media factors may also contribute in the rise of Teenage Pregnancy. With the lack of knowledge about sex education, girls are not becoming aware about this kind of matter. Most teens that have had sex wish they had waited longer and most teens and adults believe that it is important for teens to be given a strong message from society that they should not have sex until they are at least out of college. When teenagers plan to have intercourse, they should think about whether or not they could handle a child in their life. “Each year, women around the world experience 75 million unwanted pregnancies. Unwanted pregnancy can happen for two main reasons: either the couple was not using contraception, or the method they were using failed. There are many reasons why people do not use contraception to prevent unwanted pregnancy, including lack of access to family planning information and services; incest or rape; personal or religious beliefs; inadequate knowledge about the risks of pregnancy following unprotected sexual relations; and women's limited decision-making ability with regard to sexual relations and contraceptive use.” There are many reasons a woman may not want to have a child at a particular time in her life. What can we do to stop this? Here are some solutions:

Have the sex talk- Know the consequences when you enter sexual intercourse for the first time. When teen pregnancy occurs there are many sacrifices that have to be made. Such as education, most girls dropout of school to stay with the baby and so they don’t graduate and further their education. Money is also a big issue. They are young and are most likely living with their parents and on their parent’s income, and are not financially ready for a baby. It is also difficult for single teenage mothers to make a living, because they do not have the education qualifications to have a good paying job, and also have numerous commitments to the baby. 

Ask the questions to yourself:

Are you ready to become a mother?

Do you have enough knowledge to take care for a baby?

Do you have enough money to support your child?

Explain safe sex- The use of contraceptives. Using contraceptives may lessen the number of teenagers getting pregnant. We should become knowledgeable about using these things.

Teach her to respect herself- Know how to care for your own body and respect yourself not as a child but as a woman. Enjoy your childhood to the fullest. Many pregnant teens feel guilt, shame, and secrecy. They have so many responsibilities that they aren’t mentally and physically prepared for, so their body and mind have to adjust to being more of an adult, so they are forced to grow up.

Don't make sex a taboo subject- This is a serious matter and it should not be prohibited from our youth to not tackle about this kind of subject

Those listed above our some solutions to decrease and to stop the raising number of cases about teenage pregnancy. We should be responsible and be aware of what is happening around us. We should empower women not by giving ourselves up to any man we see. For every action, there are consequences. These consequences are not easy. When we enter teenage pregnancy, we can't go back to the choice we made. Be the kid of the youth you want to be, not as a mother raising a child