Young Hispanics are now the fastest-growing part of the U.S. population, according to new data released in the U.S. Census Bureau’s Demographic Analysis.

Kenneth Johnson is a demographer at the University of New Hampshire. He said in Chicago, the Hispanic population makes up the majority of the city’s population growth.

“Chicago is losing many of its other populations,” he said. “The growth of the Hispanic population through natural increase is one of the few new sources of growth for the city of Chicago and an important area of growth for the Chicago metropolitan area.”

The Demographic Analysis shows the nation’s population was roughly 308 million as of April 1. That estimate falls in the middle of the population analysis. The high end of the analysis reaches up to over 312 million people.

The results of the demographic study will be used to help analyze the 2010 Census results due out later this month.