Births

人類壽命延長和生育率下降所帶來的社會與經濟影響正衝擊全球各國。適應是關鍵。在 Japan，現在有專門清理獨居老人公寓的公司，這些老人去世後數週或數月才被發現，而成人失禁護墊的銷量在過去十多年間已超過了嬰兒尿布。在 Italy，人口減少的村莊正以 €1 的價格出售房屋，以吸引新居民並維持服務運作。在 UK，學生人數下降已導致 London 部分地區的學校和教室關閉。這些並非孤立的奇聞，而是許多已開發國家正在發生的更廣泛轉變之跡象。Oxford Institute of Population Ageing 的主任 Sarah Harper 教授表示：「在 2024 年的 EU，27 個國家中有 21 個國家的死亡人數多於出生人數。」橫跨 Asia 和 Americas —— 從 Japan 和 South Korea，到 Cuba 和 Uruguay —— 許多國家也正呈現相同的趨勢。Continue reading...

Latest ONS figures also suggest lower population growth in coming decades than previously expectedDeaths are projected to outnumber births in the UK every year from 2026 and the population is expected to grow at a slower rate over the next few decades than previously reported, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).About 1.7 million people are projected to join the population between 2024 and 2034, pushing the total up 2.5% from 69.3 million to 71.0 million, before it starts to decrease in the mid-2050s. Continue reading...

• CDC data shows 3.6 million US births in 2025, a 1% decline from 2024, with fertility rate at 53.1 births per 1,000 women ages 15-44, down 23% since 2007. • Trump administration downplays contraception in Title X grants, mentioning it once as overprescribed with side effects, amid efforts to reverse birth decline. • High maternal mortality of 17.9 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2024, with 4 in 5 pregnancy deaths preventable, contrasts lower risks of contraception.

Simulations of Australopithecus hominins’ anatomy suggest that when they gave birth, they may have exerted tremendous pressure on their pelvic floors, putting them at risk of tearing