US Census Press Releases

CB02-FF.08
April 29, 2002

Quotes and radio sound bites

Mother's Day, 2002: May 12

How Many Mothers -- How Many Children

35 million
Estimated number of mothers 15-to-44 years old in 2000.
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-170.html

67%
Proportion of women in Kentucky, ages 15 to 44, who were mothers in 2000. This is among the highest
rates in the nation. The national average is 57 percent. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-170.html

81%
Proportion of women 40-to-44 years old in 2000 who were mothers. In 1980, 90 percent of women in that
age group were mothers. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-170.html

1.9
Average number of children born to women who were 40-to-44 years old in 2000. In 1980, the number was 3.0. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-170.html

In 2000, only about 11 percent of women ended their childbearing years with four or more children, compared
with 36 percent of women in 1976. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2002/cb02-22.html

1,451
The number of births to every 1,000 women in Utah, ages 15 to 44, in 2000. This is among the highest birth
rates in the nation. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-170.html

40%
Proportion of births taking place in 1999 that were the mother's first. Another 33 percent were the second;
17 percent, the third; and 10 percent, the fourth or more.
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2002/cb02-12.html

26,000
Number of births nationwide in 1999 attended by physicians, midwives or others that did not occur in hospitals,
down from 35,000 in 1990. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2002/cb02-12.html

1-in-35
The odds of a woman's delivering twins in 1999. Her odds of having triplets or other multiple births was 1-in-541. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2002/cb02-12.html

Working, Single and Teen Moms

55%
The percentage of the 3.9 million women with infants under the age of 1 in 2000, who were in the labor force.
This rate was down from the record high of 59 percent in 1998. However, it was still much higher than it was
when first recorded by the Census Bureau in 1976 (31 percent). http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-170.html

Among the 30.9 million mothers 15 and 44 who had no children under the age of 1, 74 percent were in the labor
force in 2000. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-170.html

5.8 million
Number of never-married mothers age 15 to 44 in 2000. They represented 23 percent of all
never-married women in this age group. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-170.html

10 million
The number of single mothers living with children under 18 in the United States in 2000, up from 3 million
in 1970. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-113.html

43%
Percent of single mothers living with children under 18 in 2000 who had never married. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-113.html

15%
Proportion of single mothers living with children under 18 who were raising three or more of their
own children in 2000. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-113.html

933,000
Number of teen mothers (ages 15 to 19) in 2000. They comprised 10 percent of all women in this
age bracket. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-170.html

22%
Percent age of births in Utah in 1999 that were to teens. The Beehive State had the highest such
rate in the nation. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2002/cb02-12.html

Older Mothers

125,000
The number of women ages 40 to 44 who in 2000 had given birth in the previous year. This represented
1 percent of all women in this age group and 3 percent of women of all ages who had given birth in
that period. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-170.html

27,000
The number of women ages 40 to 44 who in 2000 gave birth in the previous year and whose baby
was their first ever. http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2001/cb01-170.html

The preceding facts come from the Current Population Survey and the Statistical Abstract of the United States.
The data are subject to sampling variability and other sources of error. Previous 2002Census Bureau Facts
for Features: African American History Month (February), Valentine's Day (Feb. 14), Women's History Month
(March),St. Patrick's Day (March 17), Census Bureau Centennial (March 6), Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
(May) and Older Americans Month (May). Questions or comments should be directed to the Census Bureau's Public Information Office (tel: [301] 457-3030; fax: [301] 457-3670; e-mail: pio@census.gov).

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