More babies were born in the United States in 2007 than any year in the nation's history -- more even than were born at the height of the Baby Boom.
In a new report published today [PDF], the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said, "The preliminary estimate of births in 2007 was 4,317,119, 1 percent more than in 2006 (4,265,555) and the highest number ever registered for the United States."
It is not clear if we are in a new "baby boom" or just a "boomlet."
The Associated Press reported:
The birth rate rose slightly for women of all ages, and births to unwed mothers reached an all-time high of about 40 percent, continuing a trend begun years ago. More than three-quarters of these women were 20 or older.
For a variety of reasons, it's become more acceptable for women to have babies without a husband, said Duke University's S. Philip Morgan, a leading fertility researcher.
The CDC report provides more data:
All measures of childbearing by unmarried women increased in the United States to historic levels in 2007 (preliminary data). The total number of births to unmarried women increased 4 percent from 2006, to 1,714,643. The 2007 total is up 26 percent from 2002 when the recent steep increases began. Births to unmarried women increased from 2006 to 2007 within each age group 15 years and over, and the increases far outpaced those in total (married and unmarried) births for ages 15–39 years, the principal childbearing years.
There was another interesting fact in the government report. For the 11th straight year, cesarean section deliveries rose again and now account for almost a third of all births. Black women have the highest percentage of C-sections, and in Puerto Rico nearly half of all babies were delivered that way.
