Comparative Health Characteristics of Adolescent and Older Mothers and Their Offspring in Maine.

N

17

Abortions; Adolescents; Adults; Age Differences; Birth; Birth Rate; Birth Weight; Demography; Early Parenthood; Health; Individual Characteristics; Infants; Marital Status; Mothers; Profiles; Rural Population

Health and demographic characteristics of adolescent and older mothers have been examined mostly in samples representative of urban populations often with large proportions of racial or ethnic minorities. The generalizability of data from urban, heterogeneous samples to service providers in states with large rural and semi-rural populations is questionable. This study analyzed the incidence of births to adolescents in Maine and compared the health and demographic characteristics of this population to those of older mothers. Data from the Maine Office of Data, Research and Vital Statistics revealed that both the number of births to adolescents as a percentage of all births and the birth rate for adolescents declined through the 1970s and into the mid-1980s. The percentage of adolescents not married at the time they gave birth rose from 20.9% in 1970 to 58.0% in 1985. For the years of 1980 through 1984, adolescent mothers began prenatal care on average about one-half month later than did older mothers. Compared to infants born to older mothers, a higher percentage of infants born to adolescents weighed less than 2,500 grams. The trend was linear, with the highest percentage of low birthweight infants being born to the youngest mothers. The mean Apgar scores for infants born to adolescents were lower than were scores for infants of older mothers. Adolescents were disproportionately represented in the category of abortions. (NB)

1988

ED292019