US Twin Birth Rate Hits Record High

Seeing double? That must be because the twin population in the U.S. has truly burgeoned this year, as per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) official report on how Americans gave birth in 2014. According to Medical Daily, the report shows that teen pregnancies have declined, but the rate of twin birth rate is at an all-time high at 33.9 twins per 1,000 births. Although it's not much difference from the 2013 count of 33.7 per 1,000 births, it has been increasing since 1980, when it was at 18.9 per 1,000 births.

Among almost 4 million births in 2014, 135,336 were twins. It's quite a number, but still lower than those reported from 2006 to 2009, when there was an overall rise in the total number of annual births. According to the report, black women had the highest twinning birth rate in 2013 with 38.3 to 40 per 1,000 births, compared to white and Hispanic women, whose rates were steady at 36.7 and 24.1 per 1,000 births, respectively.

"The rise in multiple birth rates has been associated with expanded use of fertility therapies [ovulation-inducing drugs and assisted reproductive technologies (ART)] and older maternal age at childbearing," the CDC authors wrote. "An estimated 1.5 percent of 2012 births were the result of ART therapies alone."

Washington Post also reports that according to STAT, the first time mother's age is now 26.3, a slight increase from 26 in 2013. While the birth rate among women in their 20s continues to decline, the birth rate for women in their 30s, 40s, and even 50s have increased over the last years.

WebMD reports that according to Abdulla Al-Khan, MD, the director and chief of maternal and fetal medicine and surgery at Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey, the older the mother is, the more likely they are to have a twin pregnancy.

"Once you are 25 or into your 30s and 40s, ovulatory cycles are not regular anymore. If you are not regular and do ovulate, you could be ovulating two follicles at the same time," Dr. Al-Khan said. Having twins also has its own setbacks and risks.

"Twins are at higher risk of preterm labor and delivery and have a higher degree of respiratory issues," Dr. Al-Khan explained. He added, "The likelihood of having a C-section is absolutely higher in twin pregnancies. There is also a higher incidence of the baby being in breech position among twins than singletons."

For more information on the new report, visit CDC.gov.