Premarital Unions Are On The Loose!

[su_quote class=”cust-pagination”]“When you have intercourse with someone, you are getting intimate with everyone they have met in that physical way for the last ten years, and everyone they & their partners have gotten physical with for the last ten years.”  — C.Everett Koop  “[/su_quote]

“Pre” means before, “marital” refers to marriage or the holy matrimony, and “union” means the coming together of two people in intercourse.

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Premarital union in the United States has become normal. In contrast, some conservative countries view union before marriage as immoral since it violates societal norms. In such countries, talking about physical love is taken as a taboo. As such, the person who initiates the topic has to be reprimanded by parents to drop off the issue. But then, misinformation is therefore equally shared in the group. Parents at home and teachers in school feel equally uneasy to discuss the topic with youngsters. The problem mounts because friends have a more profound influence than parents do.They also exert pressure and expect the adolescent to conform to the rest of them.

Questions have been formulated to solve the escalating problem: (1) What are the possible effects of engaging in the premarital union at an early stage? And (2) what are the possible preventive measures for a premarital union?

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TYPES OF unions

According to Bisi (2010), there are three types of intimate relationships, namely: Premarital union (fornication), Pure (Holy or Legal) union, and Extra-marital union (Adultery or Infidelity). Premarital unions are what most youths engage in. 

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What leads to PREMARITAL unions

 Pressure from the significant others or supporting system.

Some men demand intimacy from their partners while some ladies instill dirty thoughts by means of clothing.

Curiosity.

Many youths today have committed themselves to premarital unions due to excessive inquisitiveness. They wanted to experience it themselves.

Electronic media

The media in general greatly influence people’s beliefs. Flaunting irresponsible sensitive matters affects the beliefs of the youth.  Some authors also write articles that stimulate the youth to think about the act. Examples are pocket books, erotic novels, and provocative magazines that drive the imagination to a road of union liberation. As a result, teens and single young adults are influenced that ‘doing it’ is okay.

 Ignorance.

Ignorance is also a factor, where lack of information has led youths into premarital intercourse. Parents have refused to educate their children on the subject, and the church is not forthcoming with anything meaningful. Therefore, the youth are resorting to any information they can get from anywhere regardless of whether wrong or right.

Poor parenting.

Lack of restraint has led many singles into the dungeon of premarital unions. Some are unfortunate enough to have the wrong connection. Children that are not well brought up are likely to fall into the wrong hands. Parents should teach and guide their children to avoid fornication because not doing anything about it is bad parenting.” Some claim they went into fornication due to loneliness while children from broken homes can fall into the wrong hands due to the situation of their homes.

[su_quote class=”cust-pagination”] “All men approve of premarital union…until they have a daughter.”—Unknown “[/su_quote]

EFFECTS OF PREMARITAL unions

Inadequate prenatal care

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A teenager is less likely to seek regular prenatal care, which is essential in order to monitor the growth of the fetus. According to the American Medical Association, babies born to women who do not have regular prenatal care are four times more likely to die before the age of one year.

Risk of abortion

Unplanned pregnancies lead to a high rate of abortions. In conservative countries such as the Philippines, although abortion is illegal, it would shock you to know that the rate of abortion here is higher (at 25%) than in the United States where abortion is legal (23/1,000 women). 

Risk of fetal deaths

Statistics from the Department of Health DOH show that fetal deaths are more likely to happen in young mothers. Moreover, babies born by them are likely to have low birth weight.

Risk of acquiring cervical cancer

The Human Papillomavirus (HPV) can be transmitted through intimate acts. This wart-forming virus has been implicated in causing cancer of the cervix. If you start such acts at an early age, you have a higher likelihood of going through several partners before you settle down. As such, you increase your exposure to acquiring the virus and acquiring cervical cancer.