The median age in the United States reached an all-time high last year at 38.9, according to the latest data from the Census Bureau.
Previous data shows that the median age was 35 in 2000 and 30 in 1980. Maine is the oldest state, with a median age of 44.8, followed by New Hampshire with 43.3. The youngest are Utah, at 31.9, Washington, D.C., at 34.8, and Texas, at 35.5.
Experts told The New York Times that a declining birthrate is the main cause for the rising median age.
Andrew A. Beveridge, president of the demographic data company Social Explorer, told the newspaper: "It's simple arithmetic. Fewer kids are being born."
Another contributing factor is declining immigration levels, since new arrivals tend to be working-age adults, often with children.
Kenneth Johnson, who studies demographics at the University of New Hampshire, noted that the U.S. remains younger than the median age in Europe, which is 44.
The country's Asian population grew the most from 2021 to 2022, with a 2.4% increase during that time, followed by the Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander population, 1.8%, the Hispanic population, 1.7%, American Indian population, 1.3%, the Black population, 0.9%, and the white population, 0.1%.
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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