Australia has seen its lowest birthrate in more than a decade but stillborn rates have remained stubborn, based on the latest mothers and babies data.
In 2020, there were 295,796 babies born to 291,712 mothers. This represents a fall from 66 women per 1,000 giving birth in 2007 to 56 per 1,000 in 2020, according to the Australia’s mothers and babies report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare [AIHW], published on Friday.
There has also been an increase in the average age of first-time mothers, from 28.3 years in 2010 to 29.6 years in 2020. The average age of all mothers has continued to increase over time, with mothers now giving birth at an average age of 30.9 years, up from 30 years in 2010.
The data, which captures much of the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic in Australia, also shows there was a decline in the proportion of teenage mothers, from 3.8% in 2010 to 1.8% in 2020. Two in every seven mothers aged 35 or over were giving birth for the first time.
“Most babies (91%) in Australia are born at term (37–41 weeks),” the report said. “This is similar across the states and territories and has been stable over time.”
The rate of women giving birth by caesarean section has risen, from 32% in 2010 to 37% in 2020. Caesarean sections were more common among women aged 40 and over.
There were 7.7 stillborn babies per 1,000 born. Over the past 10 years, stillbirth and neonatal death rates have remained relatively unchanged.
More than 30% of perinatal deaths were caused by a congenital anomaly, the data found. The AIHW will release a more detailed report on stillbirths and neonatal deaths in November.
“Babies born to mothers who smoked at any point during pregnancy were more likely to be born pre-term (14%) than babies born to mothers who had not smoked (7.7%),” the report found.
Just over 6% of babies were Indigenous; 49% were female and 51% male; and more than two in three mothers were born in Australia.
