Adolescent Pregnancy in Mexico

Abstract

The story of adolescent pregnancy in Mexico is the overall reduction in fertility among girls and young women in Mexico from the 1960s through 2010. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the fertility rate in Mexico was six children per female. By 1960, the fertility rate was seven children per female. By 2010, the estimated fertility rate had dropped to 2.3 children per female and will reach replacement (2.1 children per woman) in the near future (National Population Council, Mexico 2011). This spectacular decline in fertility is even more remarkable when the context in which it occurred is considered. The history of post-Columbian Mexico is in part the history of a burden imposed upon women and girls by Roman Catholic Church doctrine. As both, a formal and informal member of the Mexican-ruling Governments, over the years, the Church has sanctioned large families and forbid contraception and abortion. Like most developing countries, despite much progress, Mexico is a nation still sharply divided by income and education. While a growing middle class continues to emerge in the urban areas, there remains widespread poverty and sharp divisions between the wealthy educated elite and the poor. The major changes in sexual behavior among adolescent girls in Mexico are much the same as among adolescent girls in developing countries worldwide. The overall reduction in fertility among girls and young women in Mexico since the 1960 has been profound. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the fertility rate in Mexico was six children per female. In the 1960s, the fertility rate had increased to seven children per female. In 2010, the estimated fertility rate was 2.3 children per female and is estimated to reach replacement (2.1 children per female) in the near future. This is a 70 % drop in fertility since 1960.