Correlates of early motherhood in slum areas of Rajshahi City, Bangladesh

Abstract

Background: Teenage pregnancy comprises 24.2 percent of the total pregnancies of Bangladesh, which is a great threat to the overall health of the country. In Bangladesh, a large number of young women migrate to urban areas for work and most of them live in slum areas. This study aims at shedding light on the factors that contribute to the incidence of pregnancy among the women before reaching the age 18 in slum areas. Methods: This study is based on primary data, and a total of 522 samples were sorted out from the total 609 interviewed ever married women. These 609 respondents were interviewed using purposive sampling technique. Both bivariate and multivariate analytical techniques have been applied to analyze the data. Results: Result shows that as much as about 83.7 percent respondents were found to be married before reaching age 18, and 79 percent conceived before age 18. Incidence of early conception decreases with the increase in the education of respondents and in the education of their husbands. Respondents—with higher family income, and who have ever used family planning are less likely to experience early conception compared to their counterparts. Conclusions: The situation indicates that the overall health of the community is at stake. For the traction of the situation, priority should be given to enhance education and income level of slum people, especially women. Family planning programmes should be strengthened and improved with a special focus to the coverage of the slum areas.