2007 birth rate tops 1950s baby boom peak
by the numbers
By Daphne Garland-McLean -- Kids Today, 6/1/2009 12:00:00 AM
Are we in the midst of a new baby boom? According to preliminary data from the National Center for Health Statistics, we could be. Although up only 1% from 2006's 4,265,555 births, the number of births in the United States soared to new heights in 2007 reaching a record-breaking 4,317,119 births — a figure that tops the "baby boom" peak of the late 1950's postwar times.
By Race and Age
Based on the data, this growth in the overall number of births is not surprising considering births increased among all race and Hispanic origin groups. Births to non-Hispanic white mothers increased by less than 1%, while births among the other race and Hispanic origin groups increased between 2% and 6%. Asian and Pacific Islanders showed the largest increase at 5.7%.
In addition, births increased among nearly all age groups. A slight increase occurred among women aged 20–24 years. This group increased by less than 1% in 2007 to 106.4 births per 1,000 from the previous year's 105.9. A 1% growth rate in births was charted for women aged 25–29 years. This group has the highest birth rate among any age group, 117.5 births per 1,000. The birth rate for women aged 30–34 years increased by 2% to 99.9 births per 1,000 women in 2007, up from 97.7 in 2006. Birth rates for women aged 35–39 rose for the 29th straight year. Rates for this group reached 47.5 births per 1,000 — its highest rate over the past 40 years. For women 40–44, birth rates went up 1%, to 9.5 births per 1,000 women, the highest number since 1968. And, while the number of births to women between ages 45–54 increased 5% from 2006, to 7,349, the birth rate remained unchanged at 0.6 births per 1,000 women.
The birth rate for the nation's teens, those 15–19 years old, rose by 1% to 42.5 births per 1,000 or 445,045 live births. This spike in birth rates for this group has some concerned as this is the second year in a row in which this age group has increased.
What's up with the states?
California registered the highest number of births for any state. Babies born in California totaled 566,352, followed by Texas with 407,640 births and New York with 253,458 births. Vermont, at 6,513 live births, recorded the lowest number of new babies among any state in the nation.
However, when looking at state birth rates — total births per 1,000 population, the figures show a slightly different view. Twenty-one states exceed the national birth rate of 14.3. With a birth rate of 20.8, Utah tops the list. Texas and Idaho, with birth rates at 17.1 and 16.7 births per 1,000, respectively, round out the top three states with the highest birth rates. Vermont claims the last position on the roster of states with a rate of 10.5.
The latest development
Births to unwed mothers seem to be the latest trend. According to the most recent statistics, about two-fifths of all births occurred in this group in 2007. That's a 4% increase over the number of babies born to unwed mothers in 2006. And these unwed mothers were not all teens either. The data shows that more than 75% of these mothers were age 20 or older.
The future
Does the 2007 increase in birth rates signal a return to a well-documented historical trend, where birth rates thrive in prosperity and lag in difficult economic times? Figures for 2008 and 2009 will tell the story. These are strange and different economic times, and consumers are tightening their belts — maybe in more ways than one.
Births and birth rates by state, 2007
| Total births | Minority percentage2 | Birth rates all races3 | Fertility rate all races4 | |
| 1. Excludes data for the territories. 2. Race and Hispanic origin are reported separately at birth and determined by the race and origin of the mother. Minorities are defined as anyone who is NOT a non-Hispanic white. 3. Birth rates are total births per 1,000 total population. 4. Fertility rates are total births per 1,000 women aged 15–44 years. Source: National Center for Health Statistics, preliminary data for 2007 |
||||
| United States 1 | 4,317,119 | 46% | 14.3 | 69.5 |
| Alabama | 64,749 | 41% | 14.0 | 68.7 |
| Alaska | 11,101 | 44% | 16.2 | 77.5 |
| Arizona | 102,992 | 59% | 16.2 | 81.1 |
| Arkansas | 41,377 | 33% | 14.6 | 73.1 |
| California | 566,352 | 72% | 15.5 | 72.5 |
| Colorado | 70,805 | 40% | 14.6 | 69.8 |
| Connecticut | 41,663 | 40% | 11.9 | 59.5 |
| Delaware | 12,171 | 47% | 14.1 | 68.4 |
| District of Columbia | 8,862 | 75% | 15.1 | 60.0 |
| Florida | 239,143 | 55% | 13.1 | 68.4 |
| Georgia | 152,021 | 52% | 15.9 | 73.7 |
| Hawaii | 19,137 | 86% | 14.9 | 76.0 |
| Idaho | 25,019 | 19% | 16.7 | 83.4 |
| Illinois | 180,856 | 47% | 14.1 | 67.4 |
| Indiana | 89,847 | 23% | 14.2 | 69.7 |
| Iowa | 40,885 | 16% | 13.7 | 70.1 |
| Kansas | 42,004 | 27% | 15.1 | 75.6 |
| Kentucky | 59,370 | 16% | 14.0 | 68.6 |
| Louisiana | 66,260 | 46% | 15.4 | 73.3 |
| Maine | 14,120 | 6% | 10.7 | 55.6 |
| Maryland | 78,096 | 54% | 13.9 | 65.6 |
| Massachusetts | 77,962 | 31% | 12.1 | 57.4 |
| Michigan | 125,394 | 29% | 12.4 | 61.5 |
| Minnesota | 73,745 | 27% | 14.2 | 69.7 |
| Mississippi | 46,501 | 50% | 15.9 | 76.9 |
| Missouri | 81,928 | 24% | 13.9 | 68.8 |
| Montana | 12,444 | 18% | 13.0 | 68.6 |
| Nebraska | 26,923 | 27% | 15.2 | 76.2 |
| Nevada | 41,202 | 58% | 16.1 | 79.6 |
| New Hampshire | 14,169 | 10% | 10.8 | 53.8 |
| New Jersey | 116,060 | 52% | 13.4 | 66.1 |
| New Mexico | 30,555 | 74% | 15.5 | 76.4 |
| New York | 253,458 | 50% | 13.1 | 62.1 |
| North Carolina | 131,016 | 45% | 14.5 | 69.6 |
| North Dakota | 8,840 | 17% | 13.8 | 69.8 |
| Ohio | 150,882 | 23% | 13.2 | 65.5 |
| Oklahoma | 55,078 | 36% | 15.2 | 76.0 |
| Oregon | 49,372 | 30% | 13.2 | 66.1 |
| Pennsylvania | 150,731 | 28% | 12.1 | 61.9 |
| Rhode Island | 12,375 | 35% | 11.7 | 55.8 |
| South Carolina | 62,891 | 45% | 14.3 | 69.9 |
| South Dakota | 12,259 | 24% | 15.4 | 80.0 |
| Tennessee | 86,707 | 33% | 14.1 | 68.8 |
| Texas | 407,640 | 66% | 17.1 | 80.1 |
| Utah | 55,131 | 22% | 20.8 | 94.4 |
| Vermont | 6,513 | 4% | 10.5 | 53.2 |
| Virginia | 108,874 | 43% | 14.1 | 67.0 |
| Washington | 88,958 | 37% | 13.8 | 66.9 |
| West Virginia | 21,992 | 6% | 12.1 | 63.1 |
| Wisconsin | 72,796 | 25% | 13.0 | 65.0 |
| Wyoming | 7,893 | 18% | 15.1 | 77.7 |
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