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The vast majority of fertile-age, opposite-sex couples can conceive fairly quickly if they try, and people in the upper half of the global income distribution n

The vast majority of fertile-age, opposite-sex couples can conceive fairly quickly if they try, and people in the upper half of the global income distribution now have access to medical care if they run into any issues. Infant mortality is also way down compared to past centuries. https://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/trying-to-conceive/up-your-chances-of-getting-pregnant-at-every-age/ https://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/trying-to-conceive/...

Aerroon 6y ago
It's not just about the ability to conceive though. Testosterone is a hormone that has very wide ranging effects.[0] The regulation of sex-drive alone could have an impact on the fertility rate. [0] https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/understanding-how-testosterone-affects-men https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/underst...
- toomuchtodo 6y ago
  I think this overthinks the situation. Kids are an expensive luxury in first world countries, which many can’t afford and a proportion who can don’t want them. At the same time, in environments with easy access to contraceptives and where women are educated and empowered, the fertility rate falls without fail (per Our World In Data). https://ourworldindata.org/fertility-rate https://ourworldindata.org/fertility-rate
- Angostura 6y ago
  I think even with reduced sex drive, the chances are that you would still be able to have sex successfully at least 3 times in your fertile life. The "issue" – and lets face it, a gradual, managed decline in population is just what the Earth ordered – is that we have collectively decided we would like fewer kids and are deploying birth control.
chaostheory 6y ago
The data in this Parents article is really out of date I can’t find the white papers I want to cite but here’s a better article, even though it’s also older https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2018/10/19/us-fertility-rates-collapse-finger-pointing-blame-follow/?noredirect=on https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2018/10/19/us-fertilit... Even accounting for social (contraception and abortion) and economic changes, fertility has gone down in developed countries

Aerroon 6y ago

It's not just about the ability to conceive though. Testosterone is a hormone that has very wide ranging effects.[0] The regulation of sex-drive alone could have an impact on the fertility rate. [0] https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/understanding-how-testosterone-affects-men https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/underst...

toomuchtodo 6y ago
I think this overthinks the situation. Kids are an expensive luxury in first world countries, which many can’t afford and a proportion who can don’t want them. At the same time, in environments with easy access to contraceptives and where women are educated and empowered, the fertility rate falls without fail (per Our World In Data). https://ourworldindata.org/fertility-rate https://ourworldindata.org/fertility-rate
Angostura 6y ago
I think even with reduced sex drive, the chances are that you would still be able to have sex successfully at least 3 times in your fertile life. The "issue" – and lets face it, a gradual, managed decline in population is just what the Earth ordered – is that we have collectively decided we would like fewer kids and are deploying birth control.

chaostheory 6y ago

The data in this Parents article is really out of date I can’t find the white papers I want to cite but here’s a better article, even though it’s also older https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2018/10/19/us-fertility-rates-collapse-finger-pointing-blame-follow/?noredirect=on https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2018/10/19/us-fertilit... Even accounting for social (contraception and abortion) and economic changes, fertility has gone down in developed countries