Accurate, Focused Research on Law, Technology and Knowledge Discovery Since 2002

CDC: Changing Patterns of Nonmarital Childbearing in the United States

CDC/National Center for Health Statistics, Changing Patterns of Nonmarital Childbearing in the United States, May 2009

  • “Childbearing among unmarried women has been the subject of intense public policy and public health concern for decades, much of it reflecting concerns about the impact on family structure and the economic security of children. Nonmarital births are at higher risk of having adverse birth outcomes such as low birthweight, preterm birth, and infant mortality than are children born to married women. Children born to single mothers typically have more limited social and financial resources. This report examines data on nonmarital births from the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS). The principal measures reviewed are the number of births to unmarried women, the birth rate for unmarried women, and the percentage of all births to unmarried women…Childbearing by unmarried women has resumed a steep climb since 2002…Births to unmarried women totaled 1,714,643 in 2007, 26% more than in 2002…Nearly 4 in 10 U.S. births were to unmarried women in 2007….Birth rates have risen considerably for unmarried women in their twenties and over, while declining or changing little for unmarried teenagers.”
  • Sorry, comments are closed for this post.