Socio-demographic factors and Antenatal behaviours of Tribal and non-tribal adolescent mothers: A study from selected districts of Madhya Pradesh

Background: Tribal adolescent mothers in India represent a highly vulnerable group with significantlypoorer perinatal outcomes compared to the general population. Socioeconomic and demographicdisparities further exacerbate these health inequities.Objectives: To study the effect of socio-demographic factors associated with tribal and non-tribaladolescent mothers in selected districts of MPMethods: Community-based cross sectional retrospective study involving tribal & non-tribaladolescent mothers. A pre-tested, structured questionnaire was used to collect data on householdfactors, reproductive health behaviours, and foetal outcomesResults: Study involved 177 & 155 respondents from non-tribal and Tribal group from selecteddistricts of Madhya Pradesh. Three-fourths (65.2percent) of tribal respondents had 'No Education', incontrast, respondents in non-tribal group demonstrated relatively higher educational attainmentwith Primary (31.6percent), followed by middle education (22.6percent). This lack of education isintergenerational and even more pronounced in their parents, with 81.3% of fathers having noeducation. Critically, their families lacked a stable economic foundation: 51.0% of their fathers and47.1% of their husbands were 'Unemployed'. This economic and educational vulnerability iscompounded by social risk factors. Husbands’ alcohol consumption was far higher (87.1percent) intribal than non-tribal where merely one-thirds of the respondents (33.3percent) husbands consumedalcohol.Conclusion: Teenage pregnancy is a major public health issue, particularly in low- and middle-incomecountries such as India, where it significantly increases the burden of maternal and newborn illness.It is a complicated process that results from a combination of biological immaturity andsocioeconomic influences. In Madhya Pradesh, where there are many tribal people, culturaltraditions, geographical isolation, and disparities in access to healthcare exacerbate the condition ofadolescent pregnancy.