Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2018) Teenage mothers in Australia 2015, AIHW, Australian Government, accessed 28 March 2023.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2018). Teenage mothers in Australia 2015. Canberra: AIHW.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Teenage mothers in Australia 2015. AIHW, 2018.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Teenage mothers in Australia 2015. Canberra: AIHW; 2018.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2018, Teenage mothers in Australia 2015, AIHW, Canberra.
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This report presents key statistics and trends for teenage mothers and their babies in Australia. Teenage mothers and their babies are more likely to experience broader disadvantage, have antenatal risk factors and have poorer maternal and baby outcomes during and after birth, than older mothers and their babies. In Australia, the rate of teenage births has decreased between 2005 and 2015, from 17.5 births per 1,000 women to 11.4. In 2015, 8,268 babies were born to 8,203 teenage mothers aged less than 20, accounting for 2.7% of all mothers.
Teenage mothers were 9 times as likely to live in the lowest socioeconomic (SES) areas compared to the highest SES areas
1 in 4 teenage mothers smoked after 20 weeks of pregnancy
The rate of teenage births in Australia is in decline, from 17.5 births per 1,000 women in 2005 to 11.4 in 2015
Babies of teenage mothers were 1.3 times as likely to be of low birthweight than babies of 20-24 year old mothers
The age of women at first birth has been increasing in Australia, with a 2015 average of 28.9 years (AIHW 2017a). In 2015, 2.7% of all births in Australia were to teenage mothers—for the purposes of this report ‘teenage’ refers to mothers aged under 20—most of whom were aged 18 or 19 (73.8%); 0.8% were aged under 15.
Teenage mothers remain of interest, as they are more likely than older mothers to experience broader disadvantage because of their younger age, including access to education, employment and social support (AIHW 2012; Marino et al. 2016; McArthur & Barry 2013).
Evidence also shows that babies born to teenage mothers are more likely to be pre-term, of low birthweight and more likely to suffer higher morbidity and mortality (AIHW 2012; AIHW 2016b; Marino et al. 2016).
End matter: Acknowledgments; Glossary; References
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