Healthcommunities.com, Inc., a privately-owned publisher of online health information since 1998, announces recent additions to womenshealthchannel.com. These new features allow browsers to interact and share information about such issues as teen pregnancy with each other and with board-certified physicians.

Northampton, MA (Vocus/PRWEB ) July 2, 2008 -- Womenshealthchannel.com, a physician-developed and -monitored website that provides information about pregnancy—as well as a host of other women's health issues—announces recent enhancements designed to help pregnant teens. In developed nations such as the United States, teen pregnancy is considered an undesirable circumstance and a variety of measures, including abstinence and contraception information and sex education, are used to prevent it. And with good reason: data shows that most teen mothers have a much more difficult time raising healthy, well-adjusted children than older (non-teen) women. Teen mothers require additional determination, education, inspiration, and support to achieve the best possible outcome for themselves and for their children. The new interactive sections of womenshealthchannel's
Teen Pregnancy Web pages will help to provide this additional level of support.

Since launching in 2000, womenshealthchannel has provided trustworthy patient education information and has helped millions learn about teen pregnancy and other women's health issues. Its recent enhancements include condition-specific forums and specialized blogs that allow pregnant teens, teenaged moms, and the people who make up their support network to share information in a clinical information setting. The enhancements are not limited to the “Teen Pregnancy” section: women who have medical conditions such as cervical dysplasia, uterine fibroids, or ovarian cancer, also can benefit from information sharing provided by the new enhancements.

All the information on womenshealthchannel is free

Teen pregnancy statistics may be startling to womenshealthchannel readers. Infants born to teenage mothers are at increased risk for a number of health problems and are more likely to experience social and emotional problems, as well. According to Stanley J. Swierzewski III, MD, the CEO and Founder of womenshealthchannel, “Nearly 1 million teens become pregnant in the United States each year—the highest teen pregnancy rate of any developed nation. The medical information on womenshealthchannel encourages teens to delay sexual activity or consistently use contraception if they are sexually active. The information can inspire teens who are already pregnant to do what is best for them and their unborn child, such as seeking pre- and postnatal care, eating right, not smoking and not taking drugs or alcohol, and going to all pre- and post-natal visits, among other things.”

The enhancements to womenshealthchannel come at a time when teen pregnancy is in the news due to 17-year-old celebrity Jamie Lynn Spears' recent pregnancy, as well as a highly-publicized incident in Gloucester, MA, in which 17 high school students became pregnant in the course of the school year (a number more than 4 times higher than the high school's average) and rumors surfaced of an alleged pact between the teens to become pregnant simultaneously to raise their children together.

The upgrades to womenshealthchannel are designed to support pregnant teens and teen moms through information sharing. The forums and specialized blogs called 'Living with…' sections (e.g., Living with Teen Pregnancy) give pregnant teens, teen moms, and their families the chance to share tips and experiences about medical care, about the importance of good nutrition, and about what to expect when the baby is born, etc. By sharing information, teens can learn helpful tips from others who have successfully managed their pregnancies—tips they may not learn about from their existing support structures or physician consultations.

The "Living with …" sections are collections of personal stories that are submitted by browsers and are moderated, edited, and then published by womenshealthchannel staff. Readers of the stories can post responses that corroborate the information or provide an additional perspective.

“All the information on womenshealthchannel is free,” adds Dr. Swierzewski, “and is provided without obligation. Readers don't have to join anything to benefit and they aren't made to feel as though they're part of a 'teen pregnancy club'.” Health care consumers can register to post in the forums and/or to receive the most compelling stories, the most informative forum posts, and other newsworthy information about specific conditions via e-mail.”

Another new womenshealthchannel feature that is simple to use but very useful is a Questions to Ask Your Doctor About Your Pregnancy (For Teens) handout that browsers can print out and take to a medical appointment. Using this form, pregnant teens can be sure to ask their medical team the right questions and best position themselves to benefit from their physician's care.

Womenshealthchannel.com is published by Healthcommunities.com, Inc., a privately-held company founded in 1998. Healthcommunities.com, which serves health care consumers searching for reliable information on the Internet, is a Physician Developed and Monitored™ collection of online communities that provides information and resources to consumers and patient education website services to health care providers.

In August 2008, Healthcommunities.com will launch kidshealthchannel, which will provide important information about children's health issues to expectant parents, parents, guardians, and caregivers of children from birth to adolescence. Pediatricians who are interested in contributing to the development of kidshealthchannel should contact Healthcommunities.com as soon as possible.