Millennial women in US are facing the first ‘active decline’ in well-being since WWII – with suicides, debt and cost of living all skyrocketing
For decades, young women have seen steep improvements in their well-being and future prospects, but that appears to be coming to an end
A report from a Washington DC-based think tank shows that the group's progress has reversed for the first time since the 1930s.
Researchers at the Population Reference Bureau found that the well-being index for millennial women fell to 94 out of 100 for millennials – a six percent drop from the previous group and the first since the Silent Generation reported a score of 45.
The previous age group – Generation X – reported a well-being score of 100 and Baby Boomers were at 84.
The report attributed the decline among millennials aged 25 to 34 to several factors, including high maternal mortality rates, which are three times higher than their parents' – and were the first in the last century to record rising suicide rates.
The report defined millennial women as those born between 1981 and 1999 – and specifically looked at those who are now between 25 and 34 years old.
Above is the Population Reference Bureau's well-being index, which was calculated based on 14 factors that measure health and well-being. It highlights the first decline since World War II
The graph above shows the maternal mortality rate by generation, with individuals in each generation aged between 25 and 34
Experts say the decline in the well-being of young millennials is driven by factors such as rising inflation, which increases the cost of necessities, combined with the increasing use of social media, which leaves many feeling isolated and disconnected.
They said restrictions on abortion access – with 21 states partially or completely blocking the procedure – were deepening political divisions and that the Covid pandemic, which forced shifts in socialization, was also to blame.
They wrote in the report: 'These factors dispel the idea that today's young women are doing better than the generations before them.
“That promise, at least for now, is woefully unfulfilled.”
For the report, researchers looked at data on the health and well-being of millions of women in the United States published by government agencies. They looked across generations, when women in each generation were 25 to 34 years old.
Most of the information comes from databases maintained by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The report shows that homicide rates among Millennial women aged 25 to 34 have also increased recently
Millennials' data was compared to previous generations when they were the same age: Generation
Fourteen factors were analyzed, including maternal mortality, incarceration rates, the gender pay gap and the percentage of female workers in high-earning occupations.
Diana Elliott, vice president of PRB's U.S. programs, said: “Young women today are earning college degrees and entering the workforce in record numbers to achieve their generation's version of the American Dream.
'But structural health and safety barriers prevent many of them from reaching their full potential.
“Increased suicides and homicides and a lack of access to health care services like safe abortion have the combined effect of reversing the health and safety gains of previous generations, especially (among) women of color.”
The report shows that the maternal mortality rate has risen 300 percent over the past 60 years – from 7.5 deaths per 100,000 births in the baby boomer generation to 30.4 among millennials.
Researchers say this could be caused by abortion restrictions – which cut off access to vital care – and problems with access to hospitals – with nearly eight million women of childbearing age without health insurance.
The US ranks among the worst for maternal care among the world's richest countries, with the situation only declining since 2000.
Data also showed that the suicide rate among millennial women was seven suicides per 100,000 people in the age group.
This was the first time since the Silent Generation that an increase was recorded.
The report found some promise in terms of educational attainment, with millennial women most likely to earn a bachelor's degree
The report also shows that there are shifts in the share of women in high-earning professions
The rate peaked at 8.3 per 100,000 for the Silent Generation – the grandparents of Millennials – but fell to six for Baby Boomers and to 4.4 for Generation X.
In addition to suicide rates, the data also showed that homicide rates were increasing, with 4.5 homicides per 100,000 women among millennials.
This was a slight increase compared to Generation X, where the rate had fallen to 4.3 per 100,000.
In more promising signs, researchers found an increase in the number of women earning bachelor's degrees, affecting 44 percent among millennials – three times the 12 percent recorded among the Silent Generation.
There was also a slight increase in the share of high-earning jobs held by women.
The researchers said the report highlighted the same trends they found in the 2017 preliminary report, which showed a reversal in improving cases from each generation.
The news of the decline in prosperity comes at a time when life expectancy in the US is also beginning to decline for the first time since World War II.
According to a CDC report published last month, the average American born in 2021 can be expected to live to be 76.4 years old.
By comparison, the average child born in 2014 was expected to live to be 79 years old.
The CDC suggested that Covid was the main force behind the tumbling trend.