1 in 6 People Experience Infertility Across The World
Pregnancy is a delicate issue, whether trying to terminate one in countries with legal barriers or trying to conceive but ending up with negative pregnancy test after another. For millions of people around the world, infertility is an issue they experience at some point in their lives, with one in six people experiencing it, according to a new report by WHO.
The international health agency defines infertility as a disease of the male or female reproduction system that causes a failure to get pregnant in 12 months of unprotected intercourse.
Interestingly, WHO found that infertility does not discriminate according to geographic origins, affecting people from all walks of life.
Between 48 million and 186 million people live with infertility globally, according to data analysed between 1990 and 2021.
However, a lack of up-to-date information means that no conclusions could be reached about whether the rates have remained constant or decreased.
Various factors could cause infertility, while some causes remain unexplained.
In the female system, it includes sexually transmitted diseases, hormone imbalances or reproductive system disorders like endometriosis and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).
In the male reproductive system, genital infections, hormone imbalances or abnormal sperm production can all be contributed to infertility.
Smoking, excessive alcohol and obesity are all known environmental and lifestyle factors that can lead to infertility.
While infertility does not discriminate per continent, Malta has the lowest fertility rate in Europe, with 1.13 live births per woman, according to Eurostat data.
This is significantly lower than the EU average, which is 1.53 births per woman. This data tracked births until 2021, when 4 million newborn babies were registered in the bloc.
Assisted reproduction techniques like in vitro fertilisation (IVF) have been available for three decades and their use has been on the rise since then. Most countries make couples pay out of pocket, however some countries like Malta do offer to shoulder some of the hefty costs.
What do you make of this new data? Comment below
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