Fertility |
| Births to Unmarried Women — End of the Increase? |
| In 1950, about 3 percent of all births were to unmarried women. This percentage has increased steadily over the past 50 years, and by 2001, there were 1.3 million births to unmarried women, accounting for a third of all births in the United States. During the past decade, the percentage of births to unmarried women has increased, but at a slower pace. (AmeriStat, January 2003) |
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| Declining Fertility Among U.S. Teenagers |
| Among more developed countries, the United States has one of the highest rates of teenage childbearing. In 2001 there were 45.8 live births per 1,000 women ages 15 to 19, down from the recent peak of 62.1 births per 1,000 in 1991. The birth rate of women ages 15 to 17 reached a record low in 2001: 25.2 per 1,000. (AmeriStat, January 2003) |
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| Having Children Later or Not at All |
| Age-specific fertility rates show the fertility levels among women in different age categories. Over the past 25 years, U.S. fertility rates have increased among women in their 30s, but rates are still highest for women ages 20 to 29. (AmeriStat, January 2003) |
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| U.S. Fertility Rates Higher Among Minorities |
| In 2001 there were about 4 million births in the United States and a total fertility rate (TFR) of 2.1 births per woman. Minorities contributed 42 percent of all births in 2001, although they made up only 31 percent of the population. (AmeriStat, January 2003) |
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| U.S. Fertility Trends: Boom and Bust and Leveling Off |
| Two common measures of fertility are the crude birth rate and the total fertility rate. Read about fertility trends in the United States since 1920. (AmeriStat, January 2003) |
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| Guam Grew Younger, Poorer During the 1990s |
| The 1990s, although a boom time for most of the United States, were hard on Guam, especially on its children and families. While the U.S. military presence on the island declined and tourism revenues fell off, the child population grew at the highest rate since the 1960s, raising the share of children living in poor families. (AmeriStat, November 2002) |
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| Marriage & Motherhood |
| Results from the Census 2000 Supplementary Survey show that close to 30 percent of women ages 15 to 50 who gave birth in 1999-2000 were unmarried. (AmeriStat, May 2002) |
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| Single Mothers Still a Small Fraction of the U.S. Labor Force |
| The proportion of U.S. children born to unmarried mothers has increased steadily since the early 1960s. Over the same period, more mothers with young children have joined the labor force. Despite these two trends, there has not been a big increase in the percentage of workers who are single parents of young children. (AmeriStat, February 2001) |
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| Induced Abortions in the United States |
| In the United States, about one-fifth of recognized pregnancies end in induced abortions. The abortion rate per 1,000 women has declined in recent years. (AmeriStat, September 2000) |
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