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In Reply to: Re: child brides/Unicef picture of the year posted by Farmer on February 07, 2008 at 09:14:38:
This quote stood out to me:
"But the risk for girls between the ages of 10 and 14 not to survive pregnancy is five times higher than for adult women. Every year, about 150,000 pregnant teenagers die due to complications – in particular due to a lack of medical care, let alone sex education."
Even when a girl 10-14 years old DOESN'T get pregnant, sexual activity during this phase of development has long-term consequences on her reproductive health. A 10-14 y-o girl's cervix is not at an optimal point of development for sexual contact. (A major reason they're more likely to die in childbirth.) Sexually active girls in this age range are much more susceptible to sexually transmitted diseases (due to an immature cervix) than older girls in their late teens and early 20s.
