A study found that 84% of young women aged 12 to 20 attended at the Pre-Natal Outpatient Clinic for Adolescents at the Women's Hospital (Caism), at Unicamp, did not plan their pregnancy.
Published in the scientific journal The European Journal of Contraception & Reproductive Health Care, the survey shows that only 16% of the 101 participants said they had planned their current pregnancy.
The survey was carried out with adolescents and young people monitored between June 2017 and July 2024. A structured self-completion questionnaire was applied with 28 questions, which analyzed information such as age, education, race, occupation, area of residence, coexistence with partner and sexual reproductive history.
The majority of participants declared themselves to be mixed-race, a student and with 10 to 12 years of education. The median age of the participants was 17 years old. The first sexual intercourse occurred, on average, at 14 years old, while the first pregnancy occurred at 16.
The researchers point out that unplanned pregnancy among adolescents and young people is associated with a set of social, educational and reproductive factors.
"Our conclusion argues that society needs to guarantee quality universal education. Boys and girls must have the chance to build life projects that go beyond motherhood or fatherhood. With real options for the future, they gain autonomy to decide if they want to have children, when and how many to have", he explained.
Possible factors
The research identified two factors associated with a lower probability of a pregnancy being considered unplanned: living with a partner and the age of the first pregnancy.
In practice, the results indicate that, among the young women interviewed, those who lived with a partner and became pregnant at an older age had a lower frequency of unplanned pregnancies.
"We have to be careful. The interpretation could be: 'so, if you live with a partner, you don't have unplanned pregnancies'. No. This situation is conditioned by a context without opportunities such as education, such as better professional development", said sociologist Negli Gallardo-Alvarado, lead author of the study.
According to the researcher, early motherhood is often marked by social inequalities, educational limitations and fewer prospects for entering the job market.
"In social classes with little educational and professional assistance, motherhood ends up being seen by teenagers as a way to obtain status and independence. However, this hides serious social exclusion", he pondered.
Knowledge about contraceptives
Only 33 young people spontaneously mentioned a method before receiving a list of options.
When presented with the available methods, 97 said they knew about contraceptive pills or injectable contraceptives.
Barrier methods, such as condoms, were recognized by 94 participants, while 79 said they were aware of the intrauterine device (IUD).
For Gallardo-Alvarado, the result demonstrates that information and effective protection are not necessarily united.
"Having practical knowledge of a contraceptive method does not guarantee correct use. Modern contraceptive methods are very effective when used correctly. But we often do not know well what the correct way to use a method is," he said.
The researcher also pointed out difficulties in accessing so-called long-acting reversible contraceptives, considered more effective in preventing unplanned pregnancies, such as IUDs and hormonal implants.
"Unfortunately, this type of contraceptive reproductive technology is not universally available in Brazil. Many women, including teenagers, unfortunately do not have access to this type of contraceptive through the public system", assessed the researcher.
Impacts
The research highlighted that teenage pregnancy can have consequences that go beyond the period of pregnancy.
According to Gallardo-Alvarado, women who had children at an early age have fewer years of study and lower income in adulthood than women who did not get pregnant during adolescence.
"In socioeconomic terms, teenage pregnancy has a devastating or strong effect on the lives of women, especially," he said.
Also according to the study, the frequency of unplanned pregnancies reveals obstacles to exercising sexual and reproductive rights.
"Reproductive rights say that you have the right to choose whether you want to have a child or not, the time at which you want to have a child and the number of children. So, this is a problem for general public health and for the exercise of human rights," said the researcher.
In the research, the authors defend the expansion of access to contraceptive methods, strengthening sexual education policies, as well as opportunities to remain in school and professional insertion as fundamental measures to reduce unplanned pregnancies among adolescents and young people.
