The data provided by the management section of the Department of Health Services shows that 141,523 women below 20 years of age received antenatal services in 2009/10. Likewise 520,482 women who received antenatal services were over 20 years old.[break]
The data shows that underage pregnancies have seen an alarming rise in Nepal.
Babies born out of physically immature mothers face multiple health complications, he said, adding that such babies tend to have low weight and are prone to multiple diseases. Such mothers may need surgery services in child delivery. Doctors say early age marriage is the main cause of the problems.
“Everyday we have to deal with such mothers,” Dr Ganesh Dangal, a gynecologist at Kathmandu Model Hospital said. Moreover, underage mothers are at greater risks of facing health complications during delivery. Almost all those mothers also face psychological trauma. Dr Dangal said most of such mothers drop out of school and college after delivering babies.
Doctors say the government should raise the minimum marriageable age to get rid of such problems.
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