Teen Pregnancy Esta página en EspañolWhen teens give birth, their future prospects and those of their children decline. Teen mothers are less likely to complete high school and more likely to live in poverty than other teens. Pregnant teens aged 15–19 years are less likely to receive prenatal care and gain appropriate weight and more likely to smoke than pregnant women aged 20 years or older. These factors are also associated with poor birth outcomes. About one-third of girls in the United States get pregnant before age 20. In 2006, a total of 435,427 infants were born to mothers aged 15–19 years, a birth rate of 41.9 live births per 1,000 women in this age group.1 More than 80% of these births were unintended, meaning they occurred sooner than desired or were not wanted at any time.2 Although pregnancy and birth rates among girls aged 15–19 years have declined 34% since 1991, birth rates increased for the first time in 2006 (from 40.5 per 1,000 women in this age group in 2005 to 41.9 in 2006).1 It is too early to tell whether this increase is a trend or a one-time fluctuation in teen birth rates. Teen Pregnancy
fact sheet is available in
English (PDF 96-KB) and
en Español (PDF 113-KB). Health DisparitiesMajor disparities exist in pregnancy, birth, sexual transmitted diseases (STDs), and HIV rates. In 2005, Washington, D.C., had the highest teen birth rate in the country (63.4 per 1,000), and states Texas and New Mexico with the highest rates (61.6 each); New Hampshire had the lowest teen birth rate (17.9).4 In 2006, the overall birth rate for 15– to 19– year-old females was 41.9, but—
Sixty-nine percent of HIV/AIDS cases diagnosed in 13– to 19– year-olds in 2005 were among black youth, although only 17% of youth in the 33 reporting states were black. Among male youth aged 13–24 years, the vast majority (over 75%) of HIV/AIDS cases involve transmission of the virus through male-to-male sexual contact.5 Among females aged 13–24, the main route of HIV/AIDS transmission is through high-risk heterosexual contact (85% of cases).5 CDC’s 2006 STD Surveillance Report show higher rates of all STDs among minority racial and ethnic populations when compared to whites, with the exception of Asians/Pacific Islanders. While some of these disparities may be because of increased testing and reporting among some populations; such as, public health clinics, much work remains to improve health promotion and prevention efforts among youth and communities facing these disparities in adolescent reproductive health. For more information see Health Disparities in HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STDs, and TB. What More Needs to be Done?International comparisons show that the United States could do much better in improving teen pregnancy and birth rates. U.S. teen pregnancy and teen birth rates are the second highest among 46 countries in the developed world.3 These data show that U.S. teens’ sexual behavior is similar to teens of other developed countries in terms of when they start to have sex and how often they are having it. Yet, U.S. teens are less likely to use contraception or to consistently use more effective methods of contraception when compared to the teens of several other developed countries.6 Recent data show that 77% of the decline in teen pregnancy rates among U.S. teens aged 15–17 years is because teens have increased their use of contraception and 23% of the decline is because teens are having less sex.7 Among older U.S. teens, 18– to 19– years-old, these data show that all the reduction in pregnancy risk was related to increased contraceptive use.7 Organizations such as Advocates for Youth* and the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy* have identified effective programs to promote healthy decision-making among teenagers; such as, reducing numbers of partners, delaying initiation of sex, and increasing contraception and condom use. Although this is encouraging, much work remains to identify additional innovative interventions that address the social, cultural, and environmental influences on teen pregnancy. There is also a need to find better ways of disseminating evidence-based approaches to teen pregnancy prevention, so that effective interventions are more widely used. More on effective programs:Promoting Science-Based Approaches to Prevent Teen Pregnancy Replicating Effective Programs Plus Diffusion of Effective Behavioral Interventions* Source:
Division of Reproductive Health's
Adolescent Reproductive Health
CDC’s Division of Reproductive Health's Unintended Pregnancy, STD, HIV,
Intervention Research (USHIR)
CDC’s Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH): Healthy Youth! National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention CDC’s Division of STD Prevention CDC’s Vaccines & Immunizations page: HPV Vaccine (Human Papillomavirus and the Vaccine)
Unintended and Teen Pregnancy Prevention Data and Statistics
Teen Birth Rate Rises for First Time in 15 Years
Teen Delaying
Sexual Activity: Using Contraception More Effectively
Effect of Revised Population Counts on County-Level Hispanic Teenagers in the United States: Sexual Activity, Contraceptive Use, and Childbearing, 2002. Series No. 23, Volume 24 PDF 710KB.
Page last reviewed:
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