American Women Delaying First Pregnancy, Average Age Now 26.3 [CDC]

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The average age when a woman gives birth for the first time has reached an all-time high, according to a report from U.S. health officials.

According to the report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the average age of all moms for all birth orders has increased from 2000 to 2014. The biggest increase is found among women who became first-time mothers, from 24.9 years in 2000 to 26.3 years in 2014. The most significant increases in age were recorded between 2009 to 2014.

The researchers noted that the average age of women giving birth for the first time went up in all U.S. states. States such as California, Oregon, Washington D.C. and Utah all saw an increase of 1.9 years; while Michigan, Connecticut, West Virginia and New Hampshire all had an increase of less than a year.

The age wherein a woman gives birth for the first time sparks the most interest among researchers, the CDC said. This is because the age at first birth can affect the total number of births that a woman could have in her lifetime, which in turn affects the growth of the U.S. population.

"The average is going up for mothers, which is likely to delay childbearing, and if you delay you are more likely to have fewer births, and that has ramifications for our overall population," report author T.J. Mathews said, as per U.S. News.

"You need 2.1 births per couple to replace the population over the long term," he added. "The U.S. is right on the cusp of replacement."

The government started tracking the age of new moms around 1970, reports the Associated Press. At that time, the average age of first-time moms was 21. Since then, the age kept going up, with the most significant increases occurring within the last five years.

A huge drop in the number of teen moms under 20 is a major cause for the increase in the average age of first-time moms, Mathews said. Older women giving birth for the first time also caused it to shift.

Mathews suggested that other factors that led to the increase include economic factors, a growing interest in higher education and having more career choices. These might have prompted women to put off being a mom until they reach 30.

To this, professor John Santelli, a Columbia University professor teaching population and family health, agrees.

"Women are staying in school longer, they're going into the workforce, they're waiting to get married, and they're waiting to have kids," Santelli said.