For the first time since the 2008 recession, the U.S. birth rate inched up one percentage point with 53,000 more babies born in 2014 than in the year before.
The Daily Mail is reporting on the new survey issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which is based on a review of birth certificates. Births were up for all ethnic groups while teen births hit another historic low. There were also fewer cesarean sections and preterm deliveries.
“It looks like perhaps we’re seeing the turnaround that many experts have been anticipating,” said Gretchen Livingston, a birth trends expert at Pew Research Center, who was not involved in the survey.
The year 2014 saw four million babies born. Births rose for white, black, Asian and Hispanic women, but fell for Native American women for reasons that have not yet been determined.
Overall, the birth rate for women of child-bearing age rose one percent to just under 63 births per 1,000 women, up from 2013’s record low of 62.5. The birth rate for women in their 30s and early 40s rose while the rate for women in their late 20’s held steady after years of decline.
The national fertility rate, which tells how many children a woman can be expected to have if current birth rates continue, is 1.9. The goal is 2.1 to maintain current population levels.
The report also found fewer cesarean sections (32%), which reflects the second straight decline. Experts, who believe many C-sections are unnecessary and done out of convenience, would like to see the number fall to 15 percent.
The pre-term birth rate, which is delivery at less than 37 weeks, fell to just under 10 percent which is part of a continuing decline in these rates.
The teen birth rate fell nine percent, which is a continuation of a decline that started in 1991. Last year, there were 249,000 babies born to teens compared to the peak of 645,000 in 1970. Experts attribute the decline not only to more widespread use of contraception but also to a decrease in sexual activity.
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