Basic Facts about Low-income Children, Children 12 through 17 Years, 2012

Abstract

Children under 18 years represent 23 percent of the population, but they comprise 34 percent of all people in poverty.1 Among all children, 45 percent live in low-income families and approximately one in every five (22 percent) live in poor families. Among our oldest children, adolescents age 12 through 17 years, 41 percent live in low-income families and 19 percent live in poor families. Being a child in a low-income or poor family does not happen by chance. Parental education and employment, race/ethnicity, and other factors are associated with children’s experience of economic insecurity. This fact sheet describes the demographic, socio-economic, and geographic characteristics of adolescents and their parents. It highlights the important factors that appear to distinguish low-income and poor children in this age group from their less disadvantaged counterparts.