Utah's teen birth rate increases for first time in 10 years
Utah's birth rate was 31 per 1,000 girls 15 to 19 years old in 2006, the latest year complete data is available. In 2005, the rate was 29 per 1,000 girls in that age group.
Utah's overall rate is half what it was in 1991 — almost 62 births per 1,000 teens — and is significantly lower than the current national birth rate of 42 per 1,000 teenagers.
Some neighborhoods and communities in Utah, however, have birth rates exceeding the national rate: Rose Park, Glendale, downtown Ogden and South Salt Lake, although the rate in the downtown Ogden area is declining. The highest teen birth rates in the state are Rose Park, with an average rate of 96 per 1,000 teen girls; downtown Ogden with 83 per 1,000; and Glendale at 79 per 1,000.
When the birth rates are broken down by race and ethnicity, the highest rate continues among Hispanic/Latina girls. In 2005, the Utah rate for that ethnic group was 100 births per 1,000. In 2006, 105 per 1,000.
The teen birth rate across the United States, which continues to have the highest number of teen births among industrialized nations, was up by 3 percent between 2005 and 2006, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported this past December.
Health department adolescent health coordinator Jennifer Mayfield said public health workers are concerned and have been working with community leaders and residents. Indicators from community hospital and public health providers in the most recent year show that teen births in those areas are declining.
Beck Tierney, project coordinator for an abstinence education grant in the Weber-Morgan Health Department, said public outreach and education campaigns are being directed at local schools, community agencies and churches in the hope that a down trend continues.
"We want and need to make an even bigger impact in the lives of our teen girls," Tierney said.
Utah has federal funding for a Spanish language version of a parent/guardian education program developed by the CDC. It is designed to help parents talk frankly with their children between the ages of 9 and 12 about sexually transmitted disease and pregnancy prevention.
Several local and national studies have shown that, as with decisions to try drugs, parents play the key role in prevention. Teens who report a close or high-quality relationship with a parent or adult are significantly more likely to make decisions that protect their personal health rather than put it at risk.
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