Both the number and rate of U.S. births fell in 2008, according to recent data — a change partly attributable to uncertainty about the economy. The decline was seen in nearly all age groups, from teens 15 and up through women in their 30s, reported researchers from the National Center for Health Statistics, part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The birth rate rose only in women 40 and older.
An estimated 4,251,095 births occurred in 2008, down nearly 2% from the 4,317,119 in 2007 — the highest number ever registered in the USA. The “crude birth rate,” or the number of births per 1,000 total population, also fell 2% between 2007 and 2008.
Other highlights of the CDC’s preliminary 2008 births report include:
•The U.S. teen birth rate dropped 2% after rising in both 2006 and 2007. A decline in teen pregnancies had been a public health success story, but when the rate began to rise, some observers wondered whether teens had grown tired of prevention messages.
•The preterm, or premature, birth rate dropped 3% to 12.3% of all births. The decline occurred mainly in late preterm births, those that at 34 to 36 weeks gestation.
•The C-section rate rose for the 12th straight year to an all-time high of 32.3%. Still, the pace of the increase has slowed in the last few years.So the economy does influence reproduction . . . something we all suspected . . . jomaxx
CDC: U.S. birth rate falls, but not among moms 40 and up – http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2010-04-06-birth-rate_N.htm
U.S. birthrate drops 2 percent in 2008 – http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/06/AR2010040600758.html
Overall Birth Rates are Down, But Up for Older Women – http://www.latimes.com/news/health/boostershots
Rise in teen birth rate may have been ‘blip’ – http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/04/06/teen.births.cdc
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