Teen birth rates highest in bible belt

[Bob]

Teen birth rates highest in most religious states - Kids and parenting- msnbc.com Teen birth rates highest in most religious states
Link may be due to communities frowning on contraception, researchers say
By Jeanna Bryner
updated 7:11 p.m. ET, Wed., Sept . 16, 2009

U.S. states whose residents have more conservative religious beliefs on average tend to have higher rates of teenagers giving birth, a new study suggests. Teen birth rates highest in most religious states. State Birth rate Religiousness
Mississippi 1 1
New Mexico 2 22
Texas 3 12
Arkansas 4 7
Arizona 5 33
Oklahoma 6 10
Nevada 7 34
Tennessee 8 4
Kentucky 9 9
Georgia 10 11
Louisiana 11 5
Alabama 12 2
South Carolina 13 3
North Carolina 14 8
District of Columbia 15 100000*
Wyoming 16 100000*
Missouri 17 16
Florida 18 23
West Virginia 19 13
Alaska 20 46
Colorado 21 41
Indiana 22 17
Kansas 23 15
Delaware 24 27
Hawaii 25 18
South Dakota 26 21
Ohio 27 26
California 28 37
Montana 29 20
Illinois 30 31
Idaho 31 14
Oregon 32 38
Virginia 33 19
Utah 34 6
Michigan 35 29
Maryland 36 25
Nebraska 37 24
Washington 38 35
Iowa 39 32
Pennsylvania 40 28
Wisconsin 41 40
Minnesota 42 36
Rhode Island 43 43
North Dakota 44 30
Maine 45 47
New York 46 42
New Jersey 47 39
Connecticut 48 44
Massachusetts 49 45
Vermont 50 49
New Hampshire 51 48
? 2009 LiveScience.com. All rights reserved. let's get it on! it's hard work!

 

[30A Skunkape]

This looks like a dopey study to poke another stick in the eye of those who consider themselves religious. One could just as easily argue that air conditioning is responsible for teen pregnancy. There is no doubt it is poverty, and not religion, that is the driving force behind the rankings.

 

[Mango]

Maybe it's just the heat and a driving force.

 

[LuciferSam]

This looks like a dopey study to poke another stick in the eye of those who consider themselves religious. One could just as easily argue that air conditioning is responsible for teen pregnancy. There is no doubt it is poverty, and not religion, that is the driving force behind the rankings.

Maybe poverty is a driving force behind religiousness.

 

[LuciferSam]

Teen birth rates highest in most religious states - Kids and parenting- msnbc.com Teen birth rates highest in most religious states
Link may be due to communities frowning on contraception, researchers say
By Jeanna Bryner
updated 7:11 p.m. ET, Wed., Sept . 16, 2009

U.S. states whose residents have more conservative religious beliefs on average tend to have higher rates of teenagers giving birth, a new study suggests. Teen birth rates highest in most religious states. State Birth rate Religiousness
Mississippi 1 1
New Mexico 2 22
Texas 3 12
Arkansas 4 7
Arizona 5 33
Oklahoma 6 10
Nevada 7 34
Tennessee 8 4
Kentucky 9 9
Georgia 10 11
Louisiana 11 5
Alabama 12 2
South Carolina 13 3
North Carolina 14 8
District of Columbia 15 100000*
Wyoming 16 100000*
Missouri 17 16
Florida 18 23
West Virginia 19 13
Alaska 20 46
Colorado 21 41
Indiana 22 17
Kansas 23 15
Delaware 24 27
Hawaii 25 18
South Dakota 26 21
Ohio 27 26
California 28 37
Montana 29 20
Illinois 30 31
Idaho 31 14
Oregon 32 38
Virginia 33 19
Utah 34 6
Michigan 35 29
Maryland 36 25
Nebraska 37 24
Washington 38 35
Iowa 39 32
Pennsylvania 40 28
Wisconsin 41 40
Minnesota 42 36
Rhode Island 43 43
North Dakota 44 30
Maine 45 47
New York 46 42
New Jersey 47 39
Connecticut 48 44
Massachusetts 49 45
Vermont 50 49
New Hampshire 51 48
? 2009 LiveScience.com. All rights reserved. let's get it on! it's hard work!

I made a chart from that:

 

[Minnie]

I volunteer at an inner city health center and believe me Skunky knows what he is talking about, poverty is directly related.

If you want to compare some other statisitcs lets compare Mississippi at the top of the chart and New Hampshire at the bottom. There is a direct correlation between poverty and teen births.

There are some areas in the Mississippi delta that poverty is so extreme the areas resemble something one would expect to see in some third world country.

If you want to see poverty and the affect it has on teen births come to North Mississippi, that way you can experience it up close and personal. Until you have seen a 13 year old give birth to a premature baby which dies due to lack of prenatal care, you do not know the real affect of poverty on teen births. Babies having babies.

Advanced State Comparisons | The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy

Interestingly in Mississippi the percentage of sexually active HS students who used a condom at last sex was 67.2% compared to New Hampshire's 52.6%.

I guess those Mississippi churches are handing out condoms.

 

[LuciferSam]

Here's another one showing the rank of religiousness vs. the rank of personal income. The Personal Income figures were obtained here: The 2009 Statistical Abstract: State Rankings There appears to be an inverse correlation between religiousness and personal income.

 

[beachmouse]

Do you have a scatter chart for divorce rates? I was always amused that the Massachusetts heathens tended to have more successful marriages than people from more devout states.

 

[lerxst]

Maybe poverty is a driving force behind religiousness.

you speak with much biblical wisdom Lucifer,
"blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven"

 

[30A Skunkape]

Maybe poverty is a driving force behind religiousness.

So do you fault people who have zilch in both the material and hope departments for warming a pew on Sunday for an hour or two of inner peace? It may just be the only psychological therapy these folks can afford.