The San Joaquin Valley has more babies born to teen mothers than any other region in California, and its teen birthrate is twice as high as the rate in the Bay Area or the nearby foothills, a study says.

Released Thursday by the Public Policy Institute of California, the study said valley teen-agers are more likely to have babies than their peers in other regions, no matter what racial or ethnic group they belong to.

But the news is not all bad, because teen birthrates have declined in all categories.

"We recognize, and have been working on, the issue of teen pregnancy," said Cleopathia Moore, associate director of the Stanislaus County Health Services Agency.

Statewide, the teen-age birthrate reached a historic low in 2001, when there were nearly 47 babies born to every 1,000 teen-age girls. That's down from 73 births per 1,000 teen-age girls in 1991.

Stanislaus County had 55 births per 1,000 teen-age girls, San Joaquin County had 61 births per 1,000 and Merced County had 66 births per 1,000.

Hans Johnson, the demographer who wrote the report, said the teen birthrates are tied to poverty, unemployment and a lack of health care.

He also said the declining rates are tied to an amnesty given to undocumented workers in 1986, because birthrates spiked when spouses joined their mates, then leveled off in the early 1990s.

By 2001, foreign-born teen-agers were still more likely to give birth than native-born teen-agers, but the valley's higher-than-average rates held true for whites, blacks, Hispanics and Asians.

"Those kind of outcomes are an indication of a lack of opportunities," Johnson said. "When they look at their futures, maybe they don't see as much hope as others."

In 2001, about 53,000 children in California were born to mothers who were ages 15 to 19.

Tulare County had the highest teen birthrate in the state, with 79 babies born to every 1,000 teen-age girls. Marin County had the lowest, with 15 babies born to every 1,000 teen-age girls.

Young mothers and their children often end up living in poverty and may be dependent on public assistance. They also are less likely to get married than in the past.

In 2000, 78 percent of teen-age mothers were unmarried, up from 63 percent in 1990 and 29 percent in 1970, the report said.

Whiteside: 'Enormous needs'

Carol Whiteside, president of the Great Valley Center, a Modesto-based nonprofit group that promotes the region, said teen birthrates are an indicator of the valley's overall health.

"It's part of the suite of issues that indicate that there are enormous needs in this region that we have to be tending to," she said.

Moore said the Health Services Agency is attacking the problem on many fronts.

The agency has medical clinics where teen-agers can get contraceptives, pregnancy tests and tests for sexually transmitted diseases, as well as teen-age counselors who field questions from their peers.

The agency sponsors programs that help parents learn how to talk to their children about sex, help schools firm up their abstinence-based health curriculum and has even paired up with religious groups that preach abstinence.

Additionally, the agency has given grants to a host of community groups that sponsor activities for teen-agers, so young people can stay busy and make better choices.

"When kids feel valued, they tend to have less risky behavior," Moore said.

Bee staff writer Susan Herendeen can be reached at 578-2338 or sherendeen@modbee.com.

Reprinted by permission of Modesto Bee.