Good news for sex educators across the country: The U.S. pregnancy and abortion rates have dipped, especially among teen girls. New research from the National Center for Health and Statistics and the Guttmacher Institute shows, in general, births significantly declined among young women under 30, NBC News reports.

The data from 2010—the most current year available—showed the estimated number of pregnancies among American women ages 15 to 44 dropped that year to the lowest pregnancy rate since 1986. What’s more, U.S. abortions also fell to the lowest that rate has been since researchers began compiling data for the study in 1976.

Health researchers said the pregnancy rate for girls age 14 and younger dropped by 67 percent between 2010 and 1990. In addition, pregnancy among girls age 15 and older also fell by nearly 50 percent.

Although experts said the statistics cannot say why pregnancy rates went down, many pointed to other recent findings that showed more teens are using contraceptives than ever before, and that fewer teens today are having sex overall. They believe these factors contributed to record-low numbers of teens giving birth.

Interestingly, researchers noted that, overall, the U.S. birthrate actually increased by 1 percent during the last decade. The reason? The pregnancy rate for women age 40 and older rose by 70 percent.

Click here to learn more about how sex education can delay teen sex and help kids be safer when they decide they’re ready for sexual activity.