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1993.02.25 :  Birth, Pregnancy Statistics

Smith (301) 436-7551 Jeffrey Lancashire (301) 436-7135
February 25, 1993

       The number of births to unmarried mothers reached a record
high of 1,165,384 in 1990, 7 percent more than in 1989, and up 75
percent from 1980, according to the latest report on birth and
fertility patterns released today by the National Center for
Health Statistics.       
       In 1990, the report says, 28 percent of all births were to
unmarried women.
       There were 4,158,212 babies born in 1990, a 3-percent
increase over 1989, and the highest total since 1962. 
Provisional data for 1991 and 1992, however, show a decline,
reflecting the aging of the baby boom women and fewer women in
their twenties, the peak childbearing years.
       The report shows that increases in nonmarital birth rates
were substantial for women in all age groups, except young teens,
15-17.  Rates rose by 6-8 percent for women 18-44 and for those
15-17 by 3 percent.  Not only have the age-specific rates
continued to rise virtually without interruption since the mid-
1970s, the rates for 1990 are the highest ever observed in the 50
years for which national statistics are available.  
       Births to unmarried women rose faster for white than black
women during the 1980s, doubling for white women during the
decade while rising 43 percent for black women.  In 1990 just
over 20 percent of white births and 67 percent of black births
were to unmarried women.  Among Hispanic births, 37 percent were
to unmarried women. 
       "Advance Report of Final Natality Statistics, 1990,"
prepared by NCHS analysts Stephanie Ventura and Joyce Martin
presents the latest statistics and trend data on births for
specific racial and ethnic groups; by age, education and marital
status of the mother; and on various indicators of infant
health.     
       Birth rates to older mothers continued to rise with steady
increases observed since the mid 1970s.  Between 1980 and 1990
the rate for women 35-39 increased by 60 percent.  With more
women in these ages and higher birth rates, there were more
births in 1990 to women 35-39 years of age--almost one-third of a
million--than in any year since 1963.  The proportion of births
to women aged 30 and older was highest among Chinese and Japanese
mothers at nearly 60 percent.  
       For the fourth consecutive year, births to U.S. teens have
risen, due in part to the growing number of Hispanic teen-agers
and higher birth rates for young Hispanic women.  Researchers at
the National Center for Health Statistics reported a 16-percent
increase in the Hispanic teen population from 1985 to 1990 in
contrast to a drop of 8 percent in the number of non-Hispanic
teens.  The birth rate for Hispanic teen-agers (100.3 per 1,000
population) is more than double that for non-Hispanic teens
(54.8).  Rising levels of sexual activity among all teens, also
contributed to the rising teen birth rate. 
       Among Hispanics, Mexican-American and Puerto Rican teen-
age girls had birth rates more than triple that for Cuban teens. 
When the data were examined by race for non-Hispanics, black
teens had the highest birth rate at 116.2.  The next highest
rate, 81.1 per 1,000 women 15-19, was recorded for American
Indians.  

       The birth rate for white non-Hispanic teens was 42.5.  The
lowest rate (26.4) in 1990 was reported for Asian or Pacific-
Islander teens, and among this group Hawaiian mothers had the
highest proportion of teen births.     

       "There were more than 500,000 births to teen-age mothers
in 1990.  These young mothers are less likely to have prenatal
care and more likely to have health problems during their
pregnancy," according to Dr. William L. Roper, director, Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention.  "Programs to prevent these
high-risk pregnancies and address the problems of teen-age
mothers will use newly available data to profile those most at
risk," he said.  For the first time this annual report contained
detailed birth statistics for Hispanic, American Indian, and
Asian/Pacific Islander as well as for the white and black
populations.
       Only slightly more than half of all teen-age mothers
received prenatal care in the first trimester of pregnancy, even
with some improvement in the timing of prenatal care for this
group in recent years.   Overall, some 76 percent of all mothers
began prenatal care in the first three months of pregnancy in
1990, showing no real change in this proportion over the past
decade.        
       Low-birth weight, the major risk factor associated with
infant mortality, is considerably higher among teen-age than all
other mothers, but there are striking differences by race and
ethnicity.   
       At all ages, Chinese mothers are least likely to have a
low birth weight infant, and black mothers most likely.  Overall,
the rate of low birth weight has shown no improvement over the
past 10 years, remaining at about 7 percent and resulting in
almost 300,000 babies born at low birth weight in 1990.
       Despite low levels of early prenatal care and high levels
of teen-age childbearing, Hispanic women had relatively favorable
rates of low birth weight, possibly due, at least in part, to
their lower rate of smoking.       

       Births for some racial and ethnic groups are concentrated
geographically.  Three states accounted for nearly 60 percent of
Asian births--California with 40 percent, Hawaii with 10 percent
and New York, 9 percent.  Hispanic births in 1990 showed a
similar pattern with 41 percent in California, 20 percent in
Texas, 9 percent in New York, and 5 percent in Florida.

  NCHS is a part of the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, one of the eight agencies of the U.S. Public Health
Service within HHS.

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