PROBLEMS FACED BY ADOLESCENTS.
Adolescents – young people between the ages of 10 and 19 years – are often thought of as a healthy group. Nevertheless, many adolescents do die prematurely due to accidents, suicide, violence, pregnancy related complications and other illnesses that are either preventable or treatable. Many more suffer chronic ill-health and disability. In addition, many serious diseases in adulthood have their roots in adolescence. For example, tobacco use, sexually transmitted infections including HIV, poor eating and exercise habits, lead to illness or premature death later in life.
Adolescents are under immense pressure because of the rapid changes in their hormonal milieu, changing ideas and concepts about the world, having to cope up with the expectations from the society and the need to establish their own identity.
Not all the issues related to adoleacent life will be discusses but only environmental and social challanges faced by adoleacents are briefly mentioned.These problems are faced by adolescents worldwide however some stastical facts mwntioned here are of my own country.
Environmental and Social Challenges
Media:- With reduction in poverty and increased availability of electronic media, adolescents are exposed to information from all across the world. This exposure is often unsupervised because of working parents and increasing use of personal electronic gadgets. Due to inability to separate fact from fantasy, adolescents succumb to the glamorous portrayal of tobacco or alcohol consumption, unrealistic expectations, physical aggression, destructive behavior and unprotected sex. In urban areas, spending much of their spare time indoors on social networking sites, teenagers are actually deprived of sunlight and physical activity and are socially isolated.
Peer pressure. Peer formation is a part of adolescent social development. Pressure for conforming to norms drives many of their actions and decisions, including risk taking behavior and initiation of substance abuse.
Poverty. Adolescents belonging to poorer families are likely to have inadequate diets. Studies have shown that children belonging to poorer families had higher chances of having depression, antisocial behavior and engaging in drugs or sexual activity at earlier ages.
Illiteracy. Though the situation is improving over the years, still 33% of Indian youth are not able to complete their primary education. Female gender belonging to rural and poor background are risk factors for illiteracy.
Academic and emotional stress. Examinations cause significant physiological and psychological stress. Apart
from rapid changes in their body structures, various other factors like peer acceptance, discrimination, academic burden, parental expectations, changing social environments cause stress among youth. Switching from vernacular to English medium schools, long hours of school and tuitions are additional stress factors that are unaddressed. While most adolescents have adequate coping skills, some may have serious adjustment problems resulting in various psychological and somatic effects.
Early marriage. Though the legal age for marriage in India is 18 yr for girls, many states still have the practice of childhood and early marriage. Almost 30% of Indian girls between the ages of 15 and 19 yr are married; the proportions are higher in rural areas
Pollution. The incidence of asthma is increasing. There is ongoing research into the role of electromagnetic exposure from communication devices in disorders like childhood leukemia, brain tumors and immune dysregulation.
Discrimination. Young people are often treated as second class citizens, under the control of adults and often not involved in any decision making.Adolescent girls are often asked to limit their outdoor or extracurricular activities and are involved in any decision making. Adolescent girls are often confined to their houses and expected to do the household work. Gender based discrimination is seen in education and even food distribution.