First-time mothers of thirty years or more and their sociodemographic characteristics in Puerto Rico: 1995 – 2014

Abstract

Background/Objective. Fertility in Puerto Rico has decreased, however the proportion of mothers having their first child at older ages has increased. The aim is to describe the trends and the sociodemographic characteristics first-time mothers of thirty years or more in Puerto Rico between 1995, 2005 and 2014 and they will be compared with those younger than 30 years. Methods. The research that was conducted was descriptive. The information used comes from the archives of birth certificates provided by the Population Registry of the Department of Health. Results. Across 20 years of study, first-time mothers of thirty years or more increased from 11.1% for the 1995 to 16.5% in 2014. Both study groups experienced a decline in married women, while those not living with the father of the child almost doubled (8.9% in 1995; 13.2% in 2014) and those which coexist increased (16.2% in 1995; 25.5% in 2014). Conclusion. A higher proportion of women is deciding to postpone motherhood at the same time that marriage is losing strength in society.