4 percent decline seen in birth rates for women aged 15 to 19 years; increase of less than 1 percent seen for those aged 20 to 24 years
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
FRIDAY, March 21, 2025 (HealthDay News) — The total number of births in the United States in 2023 was 3,596,017, which was down 2 percent from 2022, according to the March 18 National Vital Statistics Reports, a publication from the National Center for Health Statistics.
Michelle J.K. Osterman, from the National Center for Health Statistics in Hyattsville, Maryland, and colleagues describe trends in fertility patterns and maternal and infant characteristics based on birth certificates of births registered in 2023.
The researchers found there were 3,596,017 births in the United States in 2023, down 2 percent from 2022. There was a 3 percent decline in the general fertility rate from 2022 to 54.5 births per 1,000 females aged 15 to 44 years in 2023. From 2022 to 2023, there was a 4 percent decline in the birth rates for females aged 15 to 19 years, an increase of less than 1 percent for women aged 20 to 24 years, a 1 to 3 percent decrease for women aged 25 to 44 years, and no change in those aged 10 to 14 and 45 to 49 years. The total fertility rate decreased 2 percent, reaching 1,621.0 births per 1,000 women in 2023. From 2022 to 2023, there were declines in birth rates for both unmarried and married women.
In 2023, there was a decline to 76.1 percent in prenatal care beginning in the first trimester; a 3.0 percent decline was seen in the percentage of women who smoked during pregnancy. In 2023, there was an increase of 1 percent in the cesarean delivery rate to 32.3 percent. The preterm birth rate and low birthweight rate for 2023 were essentially unchanged from 2022 (10.41 and 8.58 percent, respectively). The twin birth rate and triplet and higher-order multiple birth rate decreased 2 and 6 percent, respectively.
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