NATALITY Natality, or birth rate, is a population health measure that helps determine the rate of population growth and therefore provide substance to the bigger picture when trying to understand impact of community and health care resource utilization. Natality depends on both level of fertility and the age structure of populations. In Orange County, the natality rate is 11.9 live births per 1,000. Preterm birth is defined as delivery of an infant at less than 37 weeks of gestation. It is an important public health issue as preterm infants are more likely to suffer lifelong neurologic, cognitive and behavioral problems, which is why preterm birth requires sustained focus on its causes, consequences, and prevention strategies. Reducing preterm births is a Healthy People 2020 LHI with a goal to decrease preterm live births by 10 percent to reach a target of 9.4% by 2020. Currently, the national percentage of preterm births is 9.9%. Both California (8.7%) and Orange County (8.0%) meet the Healthy People 2020 target.
Orange County Natality Statistics, 2019 Age Adjusted National Objective
Infant Natality Low Birthweight Infants First Trimester Prenatal Care Adequate/ Adequate Plus Prenatal Care Births to Mothers Aged 15-19 (rates per 1,000) Breastfeeding Initiation
Orange County
California
Above/Below:
6.1% 86.8% 83.7% 10.8 95.0%
● ● ● ● ●
● ● ● ●
California 6.9% 83.5% 77.9% 15.7 94.0%
National Objective 7.8% 77.9% 77.6% a 81.9%
Source: California Department of Public Health a Healthy People 2020 National Objective has not been established.
Teen births (births to mothers aged 15-19 years old) is another public health issue that not only affects children but families and society. Teen mothers are less likely to complete high school or college, more likely to require public assistance, and more likely to live in poverty when compared to peers who are not mothers.17 Additionally, infants born to teen mothers have lower probability of obtaining emotional and financial resources and are at greater risk for low birth weight, preterm birth, and death in infancy.18 In Orange County, the teen birth rate is 10.8 births per 1,000, which is considerably less than the California (15.7 births per 1,000) and national (18.8 births per 1,000) teen birth rate.
17 18
Orange County Children’s Partnership (2019). The 24th Annual report on the Conditions of Children in Orange County [Report]. Orange County Children’s Partnership (2019). The 24th Annual report on the Conditions of Children in Orange County [Report].
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