Population characteristics

POPULATION OF CHILDREN

In 2004, there were over 73 million children under the age of 18 in the United States, representing approximately 25 percent of the total population. Young adults 20 to 24 years of age represented just over 7 percent of the population, while adults 25 to 64 years of age represented nearly 53 percent, and adults 65 years of age and over represented more than 12 percent. The median age in the United States for all races was 36 years.

Since 2000, the number of children under 5 years of age has risen 4.6 percent, and the number of children ages 5 to 19 years has risen 2 percent. The number of adults ages 65 and older has risen approximately 3.5 percent over the same period.

Reflecting the trends in the general population, the population of children has become increasingly diverse over the past several decades. Since 1980, the percentage of children who are Hispanic or Asian/Pacific Islander has more than doubled, while the percentage who are non-Hispanic White has declined. Hispanic children represented 9 percent of all children in 1980 and almost 19 percent in 2004; likewise, Asian/Pacific Islander children represented 2 percent in 1980 and 4 percent in 2004. In the same period, the percentage of children who are White dropped by approximately 18 percent to represent 58 percent of the child population in 2004, while the percentage of children who are Black remained relatively stable. In addition, nearly 3 percent of children were of more than one racial group in 2004.

> Pie Chart: U.S. Resident Population, by Age Group: 2004

> Pie Chart: Population of Children Under Age 18, by Race/Ethnicity: 2004