Women in the United States gave birth to a total of 3,932,181 babies in 2013, another record low for the country's birthrate now pointing to a "baby bust."
The figure was included in a report from the National Center for Health Statistics, a unit of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The data was retrieved from birth certificates and the National Vital Statistics System.
The NCHS reported that the total birthrate decreased for the sixth year in a row, with only 62.5 babies born last year for every 1,000 women between 15 and 44 years old. Since the peak in 2007, the country's birthrate has decreased by 10 percent.
The declining birthrate can be attributed to women below 30 years old. More and more women from the age group are delaying having children until they are older. The trend is seen in the three-percent decline in birthrate for women who are 20 to 24 years old to 80.7 babies per 1,000 women and the one-percent decline in birthrate for women who are 25 to 29 years old to 105.5 babies per 1,000 women.
The trend of delaying childbirth is further evidenced in the birthrate for women over 30 years old. The birthrate for these women is continuing to increase.
The birthrate for women who are 30 to 34 years old increased by one percent to 98 babies per 1,000 women and the birthrate for women who are 35 to 39 years old increased by two percent to 49.3 babies per 1,000 women. For women who are 40 to 44 years old, the birthrate remained the same at 10.4 babies per 1,000 women.
The report did not consider women above 44 years old as part of the country's general fertility rate. However, the report still did note that there was a 14-percent rise in the birthrate for women who are 45 to 49 years old, with 0.8 babies per 1,000 women.
One of the more important figures in the report, however, is the 10-percent decrease in the birthrate among teenage women, with 26.5 babies per 1,000 women.
While a declining birthrate may be seen as good news in relation to the world's population problem, it could lead to economic challenges for the country in the long run.
"Years of declining populations rates have created economic crises in Europe and Japan, as labor forces contract, the tax base shrinks, and the population gets older," Time reported.
