Nearly half of New Mexico babies born to single mothers

Nearly half of New Mexico babies born to single mothers

(Health Statistics-October 16, 2003)

The 2001 Health Statistics Annual Report, recently released by New Mexico's Office of Vital Records and Health Statistics, found the proportion of babies born to single mothers has more than doubled since 1982, from 22.1% to 46.3% in 2001. The national rate also has been rising, but remains well below that of New Mexico at 33.5%.

According to the report, 56% of pregnancies in New Mexico in 2000 were planned; 44% were unintended.

The state had a lower infant mortality rate than the nation as a whole: 6.4 deaths per 1,000 live births in New Mexico, compared to 6.9 nationwide.

And babies born in New Mexico cannot expect to live as long as babies born elsewhere. The life expectancy for those born in 2000 was 72.8 years for males and 77.3 years for females in New Mexico, compared to national averages of 74.1 and 79.5, respectively.

New Mexico's birth rate hit an all-time low in 2001, with 14.7 births per 1,000 people. It remains among the highest in the nation, though, outpacing the nationwide rate of 14.1.

Midwives are becoming increasingly popular. Certified nurse-midwives handled 29.3% of the births in New Mexico in 2001, compared with 19.5% in 1997.

New Mexico also reported high rates of chlamydia, a sexually transmitted disease caused by bacteria. The state reported a chlamydia rate of 362.2 per 100,000 people, compared to a nationwide rate of 275. However, New Mexico's rate of gonorrhea, another sexually transmitted disease, was lower: 59.2 cases per 100,000, compared to a nationwide rate of 127. This article was prepared by Women's Health Weekly editors from staff and other reports.