Experts have warned that the world is witnessing a collapse in fertility rates that will nearly every country on earth experiencing a decline in population by the end of the 21st century.
Researchers at the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation published a study in the Lancet which showed the global fertility rate nearly halved to 2.4 in 2017 and their projections are that it will fall below 1.7 by 2100.
At present most developed countries in Europe and North America, including Ireland, are experiencing a population growth below replacement levels while in contrast Africa is currently experiencing a massive population explosion.
In recent years studies have found that sperm counts among men in Western countries are plummeting along with testosterone but the researchers behind this study put this collapse in fertility rates down to changing lifestyles.
With women around the world being encouraged to pursue education and a career over home making less children are being born and those are, are usually born to older women which increases the risk of disability thus lessening their own chances of reproducing.
The BBC reported that Prof Christopher Murray who oversaw the study said the results were “jaw dropping” and that several countries including Japan, Spain, Portugal, Thailand and South Korea are expected to see their population more than halve by the year 2100.
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