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Show Sundav, Linu.trv Thi' Salt Lake Tribune, l. A') I'fW. Americas Youngest Mothers: Little Girls Fighting Against All Odds By Siumn Idled ( Il nhcn n.itcd or her child adopted than Writer IIICAt.n her Kim. the Liblush ot girlhood the whir of jump '"pcv playground flirtations and lumber parties faded and went 'dd at ago Ki Kim not pregnant 'Indus. Kirn is a high sehool fresh man She has a 10 month-oldaughter and a stoic streak I just have to take it as it comes, she sass with a hrug Suffer the consequences whatever good or bad comes Kim is a child mother She is one of almost 10.000 girls in the I'mted States each year who, at 14 years and younger, are wrested front the cocoon of childhood and thrust, bewildered. into motherhood For teen mothers, the road is tough enough For child mothers, the path is tougher, and longer Physically, emotionally, socially. America's youngest mothers are disadvantaged at every turn Their risks of problem pregnancies and of delivering small, sickly babies are higher than normal They're so immature they otten treat their babies as dolls to dress up or. at best brothers and sisters Unlike older teens, it w ill be years before child mothers have high school diplomas, jobs or homes of tin ir ow n - in short, years before they themselves will be grown up. "Almost every negative consequence associated w ith Uen pregnancy is accentuated for the younger girl. The repercussions go on and on and on." said Shelby Miller, a research associate in Atlanta for the Child Welfare League in New York and author of "Children As Parents Fifteen percent to 25 percent of child mothers have second babies within two years, further miring themselves in a swamp of poverty, ignorance and despair where they create new generations of child mothers. "It's a social and cultural catastrophe for everyone concerned." said Dr. Hichard Naeye, who studies disorders of newborns and is chairman of the department of pathology at the Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine. More than half of all child mothers are black; black girls 14 and younger are seven times more likely to have a baby than their white peers. Social workers and academics believe middle-class families are more likely to have a daughter's pregnancy termi- -t i poor-- i families While the actual number of child mothers is small, the adolescent pregnancy problem is much larger. Statistics indicate about 15.000 girls younger than 15 have abortions each r scar "There was a time when girls got pregnant in high school - now they're pregnant in grammar school," said Cecelia Morton, head of the home economics department at Farragut High School here, which offers day care. "They look so much like babies themselves," she added. "They take on so many adult responsibilities." But many young mothers, only children themselves, fail to grasp their new responsibilities. They regard their infants as if "this is my baby doll Everything is going to be fine." said Huby taylor, a social worker at Marillac House, a social service agency on the city's West Side. They spend money they can't spare to dress their babies in expensive "slugger" outfits or patent leather shoes as if they were playthings. That immaturity extends to their babies care At Marillac. Taylor supervises a program for pregnant teens and young mothers called Project Hope There she dispenses advice: Don't jump rope when youre eight months and mashed potapregnant: Kool-Aitoes do not make babies strong; A baby need not be rushed to the hospital for a stuffy nose. Some girls, with offspring on their laps, are taught the facts of life after life is a fact. The new knowledge sometimes supplants childish fantasies. The girls tell of their beliefs, now painfully dispelled, that "it can't happen the first time" or if "you do it standing up." Only three in 10 girls aged 14 and younger use contraceptives the first lime they have sex the lowest percentage for any group of females, according to Child Trends Inc. of Washresearch group. ington. a Peer pressure is common. Girls say. He kept asking me. He told me he loved me. " Taylor said. "He said. My friends are making fun out of me. They don't think they have choices to say no." Once pregnant, most young girls are too irresponsible to cope with impending motherhood. That has consequences for parent and child. As do most adolescents, pregnant girls tend to eat the wrong foods, e 1 1 d non-prof- Iarental support and social pro grams can help some girls overcome these odds and gam a measure ot stability A study of 185 mothers aged 15 and younger in Chicago. Cleveland and Minneapolis found during a 19 month period, six in Hi did well - they remained in school and led stable lives Al had some help usually prenatal or delivery services But special programs usually drop off after birth, and a child mother's own mother remains the key to success, said Miller, who eondueted the federally funded study The grandmother "makes n difter-enein whether they will make it or not - whether she's willing to stiek her neck out and provide soeial support and ehild care," she said. Josie. 14. is lueky Her mother cares for her daughter while Josie attends sehool. The arrangement helps her stay in sehool. tint does little to stimulate her maternal instincts. "It's hard to believe have a baby," said Josie. who. like other young mothers, asked that her last name not be used A poster of rock star Miehael Jaekson h.ings above the crib. "It s sort of like she's my mother s baby." The study found two other common trends four of five grandmothers had themselves bn i, with j., some as young as 1. and auoat one in five child mothers got pregnant again within the study's pan. Jackie, a slim gn . wun ylisli short hair and bright earrings, was and had a daughter w hen she became pregnant again last veai She had failed to replenish her Mipplv of birth control pills. The father of her secorn. child, her locker partner, was excited. "It was his first." she said. There are no marriage plans. "I'm not through having fun. she said. "I'm not the type to go out and have someone ask, Where have you been?' " As with many young mothers. Jackie rejected abortion and adop- rfW.jooted Prev t.useyi ,4 Social worker Ruby Taylor works at Marillac House in Chicago, where she supervises a program to help young mothers. Naeye said, and find themselves "competing with the unborn infant for nutrients." Girls 14 and younger also are the slowest to seek prenatal care: about 20 percent receive no care until the seventh month, if at all. The combination can produce costly, even deadly results. Young mothers have much higher than normal rates of anemia and blood poisoning and a risk twice as high as those of women in their 20s of delivering small babies 54 pounds or less. Such babies arc more susceptible to lung, brain and intestinal problems, resulting in long hospital stays and hefty bills. While dire medical consequences can be avoided with monitoring and nutritional counseling, other problems have no such ready solutions. Few girls can afford day care, leaving them little option but to leave school. An Atlanta study found one in three mothers 15 and younger dropped out within a year of giving birth. Child mothers, lacking education themselves, also tend not to talk to their babies again, treating them more as playthings. "They feel to a baby who doesn't understand. Miller said. Consequently, those babies suffer. An April 1385 report by the National Institute of Child Health Development said adolescent mothers have infants with slightly below average IQs. Later, these children have trouble adapting in school. silly-talkin- 1 1 tion. "Why should I kill it?" she asked I might as well have it. I went through all the pain. I'm not going to give it up." Social workers and scholars seek u reason fur the phenomenon of ehild mothers - one that transcends the laologv ignot Hi In her lie l ''uson "1 tragic mixing ami ('iiielessne-- s W exists remains "The only rn.uk of growing up a all may be having a baby," said .Jen nifer Knauss. executive dnector id the Illinois Caucus on 1 on tregnan cy "That's tier identity lin y don understand how much it cost-- , how much energy it takes Some! lines soeietv promotes It Taylor said For Mime gill-- , tin I m some meaning is "I have a baby I m a own cheek can my body can get attention " woman now Other experts dismiss inv notion that the lure of money affects girls who can t plan for tomorrow much less years from now tur "There is no welfare but it may getting pregnant have an effect on how you handle the pregnancy whether you keep the baby)," said Mark Testa, a sociologist at the University of Chicago who lias studied young w elfare mol hers. Welfare is just a part of the huge cost of teen pregnancy. A Northwestern University study of pregnant females ages estimated the pro!) lent eo. t Illinois cit " ns Shalt n ion a year. 1 g-- 1 nui-niiv- ll-l- 11 But beyon has an me. m ! ' i CHOICES Sofas Chairs Love Seats ! t'-n- i A : l - SHOP Sharon Colien is the AP Editor's Note Midwest regional correspondent, based in Chicago. W. BY PHONE OR VISIT OUR SHOWROOM Estimates Free Phone and Local Free Delivery Shipping Everywhere Samples by Mail or Shown in Your Home Professional Installation Available or with our Instructions Easy Financing Available or m i.r NOW IN THE BUILDMART MALiTN.W70F90THS0T&i Since its beuinnint!. vou have contributed some S630.000 to this clloit. helping well ovcHO.OOO people. Pend A Hand attain this veur and share. 50 1 4 . 1 if IsaitIakeR a in jail. Her mother was angry 'ra nds abandoned 'r eak tgl'l Wit1' a led hla k eurlv iui: im, m her through has a baby daughter and lives in a tl ree ap.irtme.it in a Acs Side housing projt el wnh hci mother and eight brothers. siMcrs. nieces and nephews She plans to marry the father ol he's 16 when she turns her ehild 21 in six years. As she proudly fingered a silver and turquoise hand she calls an engagement ring, she spoke of regrets. "I wish I had never become pregnant," she said quietly. "I would he outside running wild." For now. she dreams. "I have a fantasy of having a house on Lake Shore Drive." she said. "My baby will be pretty, be nice and re spect everybody. hope she can make it. I just don't want my baby to be like me." 1 7th exit ) ( take 7200 So. Lend A Hand is a program that has helped over 10,000 truly needy people in energy related emergencies during the past three years. 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