Age At First Childbirth Increasing In U.S., Worldwide, NCHS Report Finds

Main Category: Pregnancy / Obstetrics
Article Date: 14 Aug 2009 - 4:00 PDT

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The average age of women giving birth for the first time is increasing worldwide but remains lower in the U.S. than in other developed countries because of the nation's higher teen birth rate, according to a National Center for Health Statistics report released on Wednesday, USA Today reports. The average age at first birth for women in the U.S. was 25, compared with 29 in other developed countries.

Of the 14 countries reviewed in the report, U.S. women had the lowest age at first birth in both years studied -- 21.4 in 1970 and 25 in 2006. T.J. Mathews, a demographer at NCHS and a co-author of the report, said, "If our teen birth rate would decline to rates of the other countries, then our average age at first birth would increase to similar territory." The United Nations Demographic Yearbook for 2006 shows that the teen birth rate in the U.S. was more than eight times higher than in Japan, seven times higher than in Denmark and Sweden, and more than three times higher than in Canada. According to the NCHS report, 21% of first births in 2006 in the U.S. were to teenagers, compared with 36% in 1970 (Jayson, USA Today, 8/13).

In 1970, one in 100 births was among women ages 35 and older, compared with one in 12 in 2006, Mathews said. He added that the U.S. "is only now caught up to where other countries were in 1970" for average age of first-time mothers, adding, "It's a dramatic transition." According to Health Day/U.S. News & World Report, the age of first birth is a significant indicator of future trends, such as birth defects, birthweight and the number of children women have, which affects population trends (Gardner, Health Day/U.S. News & World Report, 8/12).

The report also found that the average age at first birth increased for all racial and ethnic groups between 1990 and 2006. The oldest average age at first birth was 28.5 years for Asian or Pacific Islander women, while the youngest was 21.9 years for Alaska Native women. The average age at first birth was 26 years for white women, 22.7 years for black women and 23.1 years for Hispanic women (USA Today, 8/13).

Age at first birth increased in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., although the report noted that some areas saw greater gains than others. The largest gains were 5.5 years in Washington, D.C., 5.2 years in Massachusetts and 5.1 years in New Hampshire. The smallest increases were two years in New Mexico, 2.3 years in Mississippi and 2.4 years in Oklahoma (Health Day/U.S. News & World Report, 8/12).

Elizabeth Gregory, director of the University of Houston's Women's Studies Program, said there are several reasons for the age increase since 1970, including the availability of the birth control pill, which allowed people to plan their families. She noted that people are also "living longer and can start families later and expect to be around to take care of them" (USA Today, 8/13).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.nationalpartnership.org. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company.

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