American
Women Are Waiting to Begin Families
Average Age at
First Birth up More Than 3 Years From 1970 to 2000
For Immediate Release
Wednesday, December 11, 2002
Contact: NCHS Press Office
(301) 458-4800
CDC Office of Media Relations (404) 639-3286
E-mail: paoquery@cdc.gov
Mean Age of Mother,
1970-2000. NVSR Vol. 51, No. 1. 14 pp. (PHS) 2003-1120.
View/download PDF 629 KB
In 2000 the average
American woman having her first baby was almost 25 years old. In 1970 the
average age was 21.4 years for a first birth, according to a new report
from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released today. The
report also showed that the average (or mean) age of mothers for all
births rose from 24.6 years to 27.2 over the past three decades.
Over one-half of all births
still occur to women in their twenties–the peak childbearing years–but the
average age in this group has shifted steadily upward since 1970. The
increase in the average age of women having a baby also reflects the
relatively recent downturn in the teen birth rate and the rising birth
rates for women in their thirties and forties. The report is based on birth
certificates filed in State vital statistics offices and reported to CDC’s
National Center for Health Statistics.
The trend in delayed
childbirth is universal--observed nationwide and among all groups in the
population. Yet, the actual age at first or subsequent births varies
greatly by State and by race and Hispanic origin. In 2000 the average age
of women at first birth ranged from a high of 27.8 years in Massachusetts
to a low of 22.5 in Mississippi.
The difference between
the State with the highest and lowest average age has increased over the
past 30 years. In 1970 Arkansas had the lowest average age for first
birth at 20.2 years and the highest age was reported by Massachusetts,
Connecticut, and New York (22.5 years).
Differences were even
more pronounced when patterns were examined by race and Hispanic origin
from 1989 (the first year detailed data are available) to 2000. American
Indian women had the lowest average age at first birth (21.6 years) in
2000, up only slightly from their 21.3 average in 1989. In 2000 Japanese
and Chinese women had the highest average age at first birth, more than 30
years; in 1989 women in these two groups were older than other women at
first birth, with an average age of about 29. The average age for
non-Hispanic white women for a first birth in 2000 was 25.9 years; the
average for non-Hispanic black women was 22.3 years; and the average
ranged considerably for Hispanic women, from about 22 years of age for
Puerto Rican and Mexican women to 27 years of age for Cuban mothers.
Comparing international
patterns, the report points to an increase in the average age at first
birth in most of the developed countries; averages in 2000 ranged from 24
in the Slovak Republic to 29 in Switzerland.
Several factors may
account for the delay in childbearing, most importantly educational
opportunities and career choices for women. From 1970 to 2000 the number
of women completing college has nearly doubled and the number in the labor
force has gone up by almost 40 percent. Changes in contraception use,
economic cycles, social support, and marriage patterns should also be
considered. .
"Mean Age of
Mother, 1970 to 2000" can be viewed or downloaded without charge at
the CDC/NCHS
Web site.
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This page last reviewed October 06, 2006
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