US Teen Birth Rate High in Comparison

US teens are no more likely to be sexually active than their peers in other developed countries, but, for a variety of reasons, they are much more likely to become parents, concludes a report out today. Teens from socially and economically disadvantaged homes are at the greatest risk, according to the report, a collaboration between researchers from the Alan Guttmacher Institute (AGI), a New York-based nonprofit organization, and colleagues in Canada, Great Britain, Sweden and France.

The US teen birth rate, 49 per 1,000 women ages 15 to 19 in 2000, dropped 20 percent during the 1990s, probably because of increased condom use and an improved economy, said lead author Jacqueline Darroch, senior vice president of AGI. But it is still about twice that of Canada and Britain and more than five times that of Sweden and France, Darroch said. Sexually active US teens are much less likely to use birth control, especially hormonal contraceptives, Darroch said. They're also less likely to have abortions. Some reasons for the differences include access to contraceptives is most limited in the United States; US teens are more likely to have sporadic sex with multiple partners than teens in other countries; and only the United States has formal policies promoting abstinence, while other countries provide more incentives to delay childbearing until adulthood, Darroch said. One-third of US school districts that provide sex education teach that birth control is ineffective in preventing pregnancy or the spread of STDs. In contrast, the Swedish government publishes a magazine about contraceptives aimed at teenagers.

Sarah Brown, director of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, praised the new study. "I think this is a very constructive report," Brown said. "It highlights that values and economics and media and expectations and public policy affect teen pregnancy. It's not just sex education."

Back to other CDC news for November 29, 2001

Previous Updates