Here are the latest statistics about children in the United States. All of the statistics were taken from the brief, America’s Children in Brief: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2006, which can be found on the site Childstats.gov. Child Stats is composed of a group of federal agencies that analyzes and reports data on children and families. In the report I found that there are a number of improvements as well as a few things that we need to improve upon.
The birthrate to unmarried teenagers has been declining since 1994. But recently the birthrate among unmarried women 20 and older has increased with the current rate at 46 births per 1,000. Although it is good that fewer unmarried teenagers are having babies the statistic is still concerning. Research has shown that children do better when they have both a mother and a father in the home.
One positive statistic is that fewer children are being exposed to second-hand smoke. The rate has decreased from 88% in 1988 to 46% in 2004. Although to me these numbers are still frighteningly high. Especially since we know how damaging second-hand smoke can be.
Since 1976, children in the United States have seen a significant increase in weight. In 1976 only 6% of children were overweight. In 2005, 18% of children were overweight. Along with the stigma being overweight has serious health risks ranging from heart problems to diabetes. This is a serious problem that really needs to be addressed. More parents need to be educated about the risks of obesity.
Obviously the non-smoking campaigns are working since the number of 12th graders who reported smoking daily has dropped from 16% to 14% in 2005. The statistics show that there is “a long-term decline in smoking among students at all grade levels.”
Violent crimes, including “homicide, rape, aggravated assault, and robbery,” among teenagers has declined from 18 victims per 1,000 youth to 11 per 1,000. This rate has been declining since 1993 when there were 44 victims per 1,000 youth.
Economic security has not changed with 17% of children living below poverty. There are 12.5 million children in the United States that live in poverty. The report also stated, “children living in female-householder families with no husband present experienced a higher poverty rate (42 percent) than did children in married-couple families (9 percent).” I am not surprised. I have always believed that being married is a great advantage both economically and emotionally.
See these related blogs:
Kid Fitness: Three in Ten Children Are Obese
Teaching Teenagers To Be Sexually Abstinent