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by Hero (18.2k points)
edited by
10 year olds can’t have babies

8 Answers

4 like 0 dislike
by Visionary (28.4k points)
selected by

This is not correct. Though it's rare for it to happen, children as young as 10 can become pregnant. In conversation with Live Science, Dr. Melissa Simon, a professor and obstetrician-gynecologist at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, emphasized that "pregnancy is possible from the start of ovulation, meaning the point at which the ovaries begin releasing mature eggs," and that "you can start ovulating before you start having your first period".

The BBC reported on a pregnant 10-year-old in Paraguay in 2015, and ABC ran a story on a Colombian 10-year-old a few years prior. More recently, in 2022, sources like Politico and The Columbus Dispatch reported that a ten-year-old Ohio rape victim crossed state lines to seek abortion care. 

False
ago by (140 points)
1 0
This was a good response, I checked out some of the websites you linked and they all are credible. I agree with you, unfortunately it's a bad situation but is true. I firsthand know multiple women who got their periods as young as 10 so the possibility is rare but not impossible.
ago by (160 points)
0 0
This was a great response. Citing actual examples of this happening is the best way to provide proof.
ago by Newbie (200 points)
0 0
This was a very good response. Your claim is true, your sources are strong, and I agree with what you have said. One thing I am curious about and one thing I want to incorporate in my own responses, is how come you did not cite an article from a counterargument from the other side and refute it? I think your response was super strong and if you added this I think it would make it even stronger and give viewers another perspective on why you are correct.
4 like 0 dislike
ago by Newbie (280 points)

This statement is false. Despite most girls according to the mayo clinic starting menstruation at around 12.4 years old it is completely possible for a girl to start menstruating at 10 years old. However it is rare with only about 1.4% of girls who are 10 years old starting menstruation according to Harvard School of Public Health. However it does not negate the fact that a 10 year old could physically become pregnant. For example as recently as 2022 there have been multiple court cases with pregnant 10 year olds involved. Such as a rape cause in Ohio where a unnamed victim became pregnant with her attackers baby at only 10 years old according to the BBC. However we must take into account that the BBC is not a non biased news source and could be dramaticising or exaggerating information for more attention. The evidence of multiple girls being reported pregnant along with information from the mayo clinic and harvard school of health about potential for 10 year olds to become pregnant supports my claim. The evidence that undermines my claim is how common it is. A very small percentage of 10 year olds are physically able to become pregnant making my claim harder for me to prove but still standing to be true. Lastly I attempted to contact the creator of this post through the platform Bluesky where the creator who goes under the user name “maximusdeicmus.bsky.social” however at the time of posting this they have not messaged me back. 

False
ago by (180 points)
0 0
I think you did a great job responding to this claim in detail. You also used multiple reliable sources to support your answer and included statistics to emphasize your idea, which is very important. Additionally, I admire how you took it a step further to try and reach out to the original author of the claim, even if they didn't reply. Good job!
ago by (190 points)
0 0
I noticed that you approached this topic and claim with a clear effort to balance medical data and statistics to real and relatable life examples.  I thought that your ability to acknowledge both supporting and contradicting evidence made your argument very strong and credible.
3 like 0 dislike
ago by Newbie (250 points)

This is incorrect, while it is biologically possible for a 10-year-old to become pregnant, the statement “10-year-olds can’t have babies” reflects the extreme medical and legal barriers that make such pregnancies extraordinarily rare and dangerous. According to the World Health Organization, girls under the age of 15 face the highest risk of complications during pregnancy and childbirth, their bodies are simply not developed enough to safely carry a pregnancy to term or endure labor.

In one widely reported case, a 10-year-old girl in Ohio became pregnant after being raped, prompting national debate over abortion access and child protection laws. As REVOLT explains, while pregnancy is technically possible after the onset of menstruation, it almost always results from abuse and carries severe physical and psychological consequences. Pregnancies that young are nearly always the result of coercion or assault. The emotional trauma, legal implications, and medical risks involved make it clear that while rare cases exist, the idea that 10-year-olds can “have babies” in any normal or acceptable sense is deeply misleading.

False
ago by (180 points)
0 0
I appreciate how both of your sources, the World Health Organization and REVOLT, are credible. I also agree with how you used a real world case to prove your point. I also came to the same conclusion. Adding more statistics could also amplify your point, but that is just my opinion. Nice job!
0 like 0 dislike
ago by (190 points)

This claim is completely false. Adolescent pregnancies are not common, but they do occur.

Tracking the original source of this claim, it is clear that there is no factual evidence. This claim was not even drawn from an article with a headline or created by a well-respected author. It was stated on a social platform called 'Bluesky,' where anyone can say anything, regardless of its validity. There is very little filtering on this platform to give people the freedom to express themselves. However, this may be harmful to people in use of the platform, as they encounter misinformation. People may begin to ignore or deny the dangers of child pregnancy and sexual assault. It is necessary that people are aware of the inaccuracy of this claim. The author of this post has no notoriety, whatsoever. The structure of this post lacks punctuation and professionalism. There is no expansion or source for this claim on the social media platform. This post was created September 13, 2025, in response to a thread discussing abortion rights. The original topic of discussion began with a quote tweet of a post regarding the character of the recently passed Charlie Kirk. The post provides opinions on the beliefs held by the political influencer. This ignited a conversation about controversial things that Charlie Kirk had vocalized in the past. One of these statements summed up Kirk’s beliefs about abortion, regardless of age. In reply, someone alleged that Kirk claimed that a pregnant 10-year-old should still be required to birth their child, as abortion is morally wrong. In reply, @blasted.off.bsky.social states “Would you force a ten year old girl to go through a pregnancy and deliver a baby, because Charlie would have. Nothing of value was lost. One less nazi hate monger.” Following, the original claim comes in by @maximusdeicmus.bsky.social : “10 year olds can’t have babies.” When following the user to their profile, there are plenty of posts about political views, making it very clear that this person is heavily right-winged. That indicates bias within the claim. Many other media outlets disagree with this declaration. These include the renowned ‘New York Times’ and ‘World Health Organization.’ The New York Times is a highly reliable source, widely recognized for their established ethical standards and transparency. The company was awarded four Pulitzer Prizes in the year of 2025. In an article published July 14th, 2022, headlined ‘Doctor Informed State of 10-Year-Old Girl’s Abortion,’ the authors are informative about an occurrence where a 10-year-old rape victim had to travel to another state in order to receive an abortion. This information alone indicates the inaccuracy of the original claim. This fact that the child received an abortion undoubtedly confirms that she, a 10-year-old, was undoubtedly pregnant. The article affirms, “The document, a ‘Terminated Pregnancy Report’ filed with the Indiana Department of Health and the Department of Child Services, states that Dr. Bernard provided abortion medication — a two-pill combination that can be taken at home or in any location and is authorized for use in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy — to a 10-year-old patient on June 30. The report was dated July 2, which puts it within Indiana’s three-day reporting requirement. (Stolberg and Sasani). The New York Times received their information from a government source, clarifying the situation surrounding the conflict of this child’s abortion. This primary source confirms that this girl was 100% pregnant at age 10. The New York Times gathered this information from national health policy, interviews, documents, and laws. Moreover, the World Health Organization is globally considered as a highly credible source due to its extensive use of technical expertise and scholarly analysis of international issues. The World Health Organization has been established as an impressive organization, spreading scientific and technical information to the world. In a report titled ‘Adolescent Pregnancy’ published April 10, 2024, the organization describes the dangers and consequences of adolescents having children. The article enlightens, “Adolescent mothers (aged 10–19 years) face higher risks of eclampsia, puerperal endometritis and systemic infections than women aged 20–24 years, and babies of adolescent mothers face higher risks of low birth weight, preterm birth and severe neonatal condition,” (WHO). This demonstrates that girls at the age of 10 can be pregnant, including internationally, and there are detrimental effects. This claim ignores the struggles and traumas of these younger girls who have plenty of damage to their bodies. If people are seeing that “10-year-olds can't get pregnant,” they might begin to believe it and create a lack of awareness on the situation of adolescent pregnancy. The World Health Organization cultivated this information from various journals and surveys from the United Nations, the Ministry of Health Zambia, and the Philippine Statistics Authority. All in all, this claim is untrue and sourced from an unprincipled social media site. It can be discredited by many dependable and honorable sources. 10-year-olds can get pregnant.

False
0 like 0 dislike
ago by (180 points)
edited ago by

This claim is incorrect. Firstly, there have been many documented cases of childbirth happening during adolescence. One of these cases involves a 10-year-old girl in Manaure, Colombia giving birth to a baby girl by c-section, as shown here: (https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna46998940). I've also read another case in which a 10-year-old girl from Ohio traveled to Indiana looking to get an abortion after she was raped. The girl's doctor confirmed that she was 6 weeks and 3 days pregnant (https://www.npr.org/2022/07/13/1111285143/abortion-10-year-old-raped-ohio). Though, it should be taken into account that news stations may over-exaggerate headlines and information to attract a larger audience.

Medically, this statement is still extremely flawed. Planned Parenthood has stated that "A woman becomes able to get pregnant when she ovulates for the first time — about 14 days before her first menstrual period." Following this, they include that this can happen to girls as young as 8 years old and it is possible for females to get pregnant before their first period. They primary contributor to pregnancy is unprotected vaginal intercourse. Planned Parenthood is a reliable organization since they are well known for providing healthcare and informing others on topics like these (https://www.plannedparenthood.org/blog/can-you-get-pregnant-at-any-age#:~:text=A%20woman%20becomes%20able%20to,Tags:%20pregnancy). 


Lastly, there is no credible source to support this claim and all evidence proves this statement to be wrong. The original author of this post is not reliable. Since they are an anonymous user on Bluesky, it's difficult to search for their educational background or occupation. 

Overall, 10-year-olds can get pregnant. While these cases are rare, they do unfortunately happen. 

False
0 like 0 dislike
ago by (190 points)

This claim is incorrect and potentially incredibly harmful.  Although it is uncommon for a 10 year old to have the ability to conceive, it is not impossible.  According to Nemour's Children's Health,Even if you haven’t had your first period, you can get pregnant if you have sex. This is because of something called ovulation, which happens even before you start having periods.” 

Additionally, UChicago Medicine stated that, “Most adolescents get their first period between ages 10 and 15. Twelve is considered an ‘average’ age for menarche — the start of the menstrual cycle.” Which furthermore proves that it is in fact possible for a 10 year old to conceive.  

Lastly, the World Health Organization posted the statistic that “Globally the adolescent birth rate for girls 10–14 years in 2023 was estimated at 1.5 per 1000.”  NBC News also reported on a 10 year old girl that gave birth. Doctors were “appalled by 10-year old giving birth”

In conclusion, the claim that 10 year olds are unable to get pregnant is incredibly false and can be disproven with a simple Google search and the reading of a few articles from incredibly reliable and credible sources.  

Exaggerated/ Misleading
0 like 0 dislike
ago by (180 points)

This statement is false, 10 year olds can in fact have children in rare cases. The ability to have a child depends on if a female is able to ovulate, which can actually occur even before a female’s first period, according to Dr. Melissa Simon, a professor and obstetrician-gynecologist at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago (Live Science). Ovulation can happen for the first time as early as age 8, according to the research of Planned Parenthood. Although this is true, this is the low end of the average age at which the maturation of eggs in the ovaries takes place, as some females can experience this at any age before 20 years old (Planned Parenthood). The false statement that 10 year olds can not have babies could be derived from observations of the average age for maturation of the female reproductive system, although it does neglect to account for rare cases in which it can occur in earlier years. 

Live Science - https://www.livescience.com/youngest-age-give-birth-pregnancy

Planned Parenthood - https://www.plannedparenthood.org/blog/can-you-get-pregnant-at-any

False
0 like 0 dislike
ago by (140 points)
This claim is false. According to Kids Health, girls can get their first period between the ages of 10-15 years old. This also means that kids, sometimes even before the age of 10, can get pregnant. Although yes, it is less common for 10 year olds to get pregnant and give birth, it is not impossible. Stats from the World Health Organization show that in 2023, the birth rates of girls aged 10-14 were an estimated 1.5 per 1000 women.

 It was reported by NBC News in 2012 that a 10-year-old in Colombia had given birth; this would not just cause her long-term health issues, but she would also have to care for a baby. This post is misleading because it implies that 10-year-olds can't have children, while in most cases, it is not their decision. This claim is also highly untrustworthy due to the lack of credibility from the websites linked.

In conclusion, 10-year-olds can have babies.

This evidence has come from these sources, which include large news broadcast websites and health organizations.

https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna46998940

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/adolescent-pregnancy

https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/talk-about-menstruation.html
Exaggerated/ Misleading

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