Pre-teen literacy and subsequent teenage childbearing in a US population

BackgroundWhile literacy is a key factor in health across the life course, the association of literacy and teenage childbearing has not been assessed in the US.Study DesignProspective cohort study using standardized reading data from 12,339 girls in the seventh grade in the 1996–97 or 1997–98 academic years of the Philadelphia Public School System linked to birth records from the city of Philadelphia (1996–2002).ResultsLess than average reading skill was independently associated with two and a half times the risk of teen childbearing than average reading skill (aHR 2.51, 95% CI: 1.67–3.77). Above average reading skill was associated with less risk (aHR 0.27, 95% CI 0.17–0.44). A significant interaction (p<.05) between reading skill and race/ethnicity indicated that Hispanic and African American girls had greater risk of teen-childbearing by literacy.ConclusionsLiteracy strongly predicts risk of teenage childbearing independent of confounders. The effects of literacy were stronger among girls with Hispanic or African American race/ethnicity.