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Summary: Teen Births

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Teen Births
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Teen Births
Demographics
Breastfeeding
Low Birthweight and Preterm Births
Prenatal Care
Teen Sexual Health
Why This Topic Is Important
Adolescent births put young parents and their children at increased risk for a host of serious life challenges and negative outcomes. Teen mothers are more likely than mothers in their 20s and early 30s to experience premature labor, give birth to infants with low birthweight, and have babies who die in infancy (1, 2). Children of teens also are at increased risk for short- and long-term physical, developmental, emotional, and academic challenges (1, 3). For example, children born to teens are more likely than children born to older mothers to drop out of high school, enter the juvenile justice system, become teen parents themselves, and experience unemployment in adulthood (3, 4).

Giving birth as a teenager can create challenges for parents as well. Teen mothers have increased risks of physical and mental health problems, and teen parenthood in general is associated with lower educational attainment, job prospects, and income levels (1, 2, 3). However, many teen parents are able to navigate these challenges successfully, become competent parents, and reach their educational and career goals.

Socioeconomic factors at the individual, family, and community levels place some teens at higher risk for pregnancy, and contribute to persistent disparities in teen birth rates by race/ethnicity, income level, and geography (1, 5). Overall, the social cost of teen births is estimated in the billions of dollars annually, due to lost productivity and expenses related to health care, foster care, and negative outcomes for children of adolescent parents (5).
For more information, see kidsdata.org's Research & Links section.

Sources for this narrative:

1.  Chabot, M. J., et al. (2021). Adolescent births in California, 2000–2018. California Department of Public Health. Retrieved from: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CFH/DMCAH/surveillance/CDPH%20Document%20Library/Adolescents/Adolescent-Births-in-CA-2018.pdf

2.  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Healthy People 2030: Reduce pregnancies in adolescents. Retrieved from: https://health.gov/healthypeople/objectives-and-data/browse-objectives/family-planning/reduce-pregnancies-adolescents-fp-03

3.  Powers, M. E., et al. (2021). Care of adolescent parents and their children. Pediatrics, 147(5), e2021050919. Retrieved from: https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/147/5/e2021050919/180815/Care-of-Adolescent-Parents-and-Their-Children

4.  DeVille, N. V., et al. (2021). Prenatal environmental exposures and associations with teen births. Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, 31(2), 197-210. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7943647

5.  Fuller, T. R., et al. (2018). Social determinants and teen pregnancy prevention: Exploring the role of nontraditional partnerships. Health Promotion Practice, 19(1), 23-30. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5701861
How Children Are Faring
The birth rate among California teens decreased by 85% between 1995 and 2021, from 63 births per 1,000 young women ages 15-19 to 9 per 1,000. At the local level, rates fell in all 35 counties with data over this period. Still, in 2021 there were more than 12,600 births to California mothers under age 20, and some counties recorded teen birth rates more than double the statewide average. Sharp declines in birth rates also were evident across age groups (14 and under, 15-17, and 18-19) between 1995 and 2021, with births to teens ages 18-19 accounting for a large, and increasing, share of state totals—more than 75% in 2021.

Trends among California racial/ethnic groups can be compared beginning in 2000. Since then, teen birth rates have decreased for all groups with data. Nevertheless, large differences remain; e.g., in 2021, teen birth rates were higher than 10 per 1,000 among African American/black, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Hispanic/Latina groups, and lower than 4 per 1,000 for Asian and white teens.
Policy Implications
Adolescent childbearing puts teen mothers and their children at increased risk for negative health, social-emotional, academic, and economic outcomes (1). While the birth rate among U.S. teens is at its lowest level on record, it still is higher than rates in many other developed nations, and continues to carry social costs estimated in the billions of dollars per year (1, 2, 3).

California's teen birth rate also is at a historic low, although disparities persist by region and race/ethnicity (4). While the state has made significant progress, continued work is needed to maintain gains and eliminate inequities. Policymakers have a role to play in creating and extending legislation—such as the California Healthy Youth Act—aimed at preventing teen births and promoting adolescent health; funding evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention programs in schools, clinics, and community settings; and improving access to quality health care and family planning services (4, 5, 6, 7).

Addressing social determinants of health is critical, as research increasingly links adverse outcomes such as low educational attainment and employment difficulties not with early childbearing itself but with challenging conditions already present in teens’ lives and which early parenthood can exacerbate—such as lack of access to quality education and health care, limited economic opportunities, and neighborhood racial segregation (4, 8, 9).

Government at all levels—including school districts—as well as the health care sector, community organizations, media, and families can influence teen sexual behavior and pregnancy (4, 8, 7). Strategies to prevent teen pregnancy can be strengthened by working collaboratively across sectors to address root causes while also expanding effective prevention programs, particularly for high-need groups such as youth in foster care, teens who already are parents, homeless youth, those in rural and low-income areas, and black, Latino, and American Indian/Alaska Native youth (1, 4, 8).

Policy and program options to prevent teen births and support teen parents and their children include:
  • Ensuring that the California Healthy Youth Act—which requires comprehensive, accurate, appropriate sexual education in middle school and high school—is implemented effectively throughout the state (5)
  • Maintaining and expanding public investments in comprehensive sexual and reproductive health education and outreach, increased access to contraception, and other family planning services and teen pregnancy prevention programs with demonstrated success (2, 4, 6, 7, 10)
  • Supporting school- and community-based strategies that provide positive youth development opportunities—e.g., through mentoring, higher education support, job training, and mental health services—and strengthen relationships with peers, parents, and other caring adults (4, 8)
  • Recognizing that a healthy pregnancy begins before conception and most teen pregnancies are unplanned, ensuring that all youth, particularly those in rural or underserved areas, have access to sexual education and family planning services, information on effective contraception such as long-acting reversible contraception, and routine health care that is comprehensive, culturally sensitive, and teen friendly (1, 4, 9)
  • Informing health care providers, youth, and parents about state confidentiality laws concerning reproductive health services and the option to keep sensitive service information confidential (1, 11)
  • Ensuring pregnant teens have access to quality prenatal care in the first trimester, along with non-medical services (such as assistance with food, housing, mental health care, and other needs), followed by quality infant care and comprehensive, youth-friendly support services for young parents, such as home-visiting programs (1, 4)
  • Funding and evaluating prevention efforts targeting young men specifically as well as programs focused on preventing repeat teen pregnancies (1, 8, 12)
  • Adopting a social determinants of health perspective on teen sexual health, and engaging nontraditional public health partners in identifying and modifying upstream social, political, economic, and environmental factors that can influence teen pregnancy and support healthy choices (2, 4, 8, 9)
  • Promoting cross-sector efforts that address larger social and structural forces affecting health outcomes for teen parents and their children, such as inequitable access to resources and services, systemic racism, disproportionate exposure to hazards, and barriers to opportunity (1, 3, 8, 9)
For more information, see kidsdata.org’s Research & Links section or visit the Guttmacher Institute and Power to Decide. Also see Policy Implications on kidsdata.org under Teen Sexual Health.

Sources for this narrative:

1.  Powers, M. E., et al. (2021). Care of adolescent parents and their children. Pediatrics, 147(5), e2021050919. Retrieved from: https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/147/5/e2021050919/180815/Care-of-Adolescent-Parents-and-Their-Children

2.  Population Reference Bureau. (2021). U.S. teenage births hit record lows—and could drop further if contraceptives were more accessible. Retrieved from: https://www.prb.org/resources/u-s-teenage-births-hit-record-lows

3.  DeVille, N. V., et al. (2021). Prenatal environmental exposures and associations with teen births. Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, 31(2), 197-210. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7943647

4.  Chabot, M. J., et al. (2021). Adolescent births in California, 2000–2018. California Department of Public Health. Retrieved from: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CFH/DMCAH/surveillance/CDPH%20Document%20Library/Adolescents/Adolescent-Births-in-CA-2018.pdf

5.  Adolescent Sexual Health Work Group. (2021). Resources to support implementation of the California Healthy Youth Act. Retrieved from: https://www.ashwg.org/sites/ashwg/assets/File/ASHWGResourceList-100220_NA_SD.pdf

6.  Power to Decide. (2021). State resources on reproductive well-being: Key information about California. Retrieved from: https://powertodecide.org/what-we-do/information/resource-library/state-specific-resources

7.  Fuller, T. R., et al. (2018). Social determinants and teen pregnancy prevention: Exploring the role of nontraditional partnerships. Health Promotion Practice, 19(1), 23-30. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5701861

8.  California Department of Public Health. (2022). California Adolescent Sexual Health Needs Index (CASHNI), 2018. Retrieved from: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CFH/DMCAH/CDPH%20Document%20Library/Data/Adolescent/CA-Adolescent-Sexual-Health-Needs-Index-2018.pdf

9.  Kim, L., et al. (2022). Promising practices for expanding students’ awareness and use of school-based family planning services. Child Trends. Retrieved from: https://www.childtrends.org/publications/promising-practices-for-expanding-students-awareness-and-use-of-school-based-family-planning-services

10.  Mark, N. D. E., & Wu, L. L. (2018). More comprehensive sex education reduced teen births: Quasi-experimental evidence. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 119(8), e2113144119. Retrieved from: https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2113144119

11.  National Center for Youth Law. (2024). California minor consent and confidentiality laws. Retrieved from: https://teenhealthlaw.org/consent

12.  Parekh, J., et al. (2021). Findings and lessons learned from an evaluation of a community-based teen pregnancy prevention program for young men. Child Trends. Retrieved from: https://www.childtrends.org/publications/lessons-from-an-evaluation-of-a-community-based-teen-pregnancy-prevention-program-for-young-men
Websites with Related Information
Key Reports and Research
County/Regional Reports
More Data Sources For Teen Births