Caesarean Births Rule the Day

Here’s a jaw-dropping stat: if your U.S.-born children, nieces, nephews or grandchildren under the age of five came into the world on a weekday, they were almost as likely to have been born via C section as to have had a normal (vaginal) birth. And most children (81%) born in the U.S. in the last five years were born on a weekday.

A look at our data on U.S. births since 2005 sheds additional light on a recent New York Times article in which reporter Denise Grady flagged the increase in the U.S. rate of C sections (as high as 32% of all births in 2007). By tracing the relationship between the timing of a baby’s birth–specifically the day of the week–and the method of delivery, we offer some additional insights into this trend and its  drivers.

From Reagan to Kennedy: Liberal and Conservative Baby Names

Ronald Reagan left office in 1989.  John Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.

Still, conservatives maintain a strong place in their heart for President Reagan; liberals a strong admiration for President Kennedy (as well as his political family).

How do we know this?  Using Circle of Moms Child Space data, of course.  We looked at the names parents give to their children.  Notably, Reagan (usually a girl’s name), is the most conservative among the top 250 names Circle of Moms’ mothers have given to their kids: 89% of mothers of children named Reagan identify themselves as conservative or Republican.

On the other side of the coin, Kennedy — also usually a girl’s name — stands as the #11 most liberal name, with 67% of “moms of Kennedy” identifying themselves as liberal or Democratic.

Late Bloomer? Early Bloomer? It May Depend on Where You Live

Everyone knows that children develop at different rates.  Some children start talking young, but are late bloomers when it comes to walking.  Others potty train at an early age, but don’t read until much later.  Lots of things factor into this.  Looking through our rich data set, we found something surprising: there are strong regional differences in child development.

Every day, many thousands of parents in the U.S. use Circle of Moms’ Child Space to share their children’s milestones with friends and family. And since Child Space has been widely adopted (more than 10% of the children born in the US in the past three years have a Child Space on Circle of Moms) we can pull some significant inferences from the data all this activity generates.

Northeast babies get chewing early; West Coasters stay on the liquid diet as long as they can