We can simply say that we are doing too well and that is why our life expectancy is increasing. In addition, there are cultures and countries in the world where it is standard to have more than two children. Wait, what exactly is a standard? And why do we live longer? Let’s take a closer look.
Let’s look at the birth rate first. In the past, in ancient times and the Middle Ages, people had 10 children, but they did so because they did not know how many of them would live to adulthood. As we know, in the middle Ages, people also died of dirt. Today, when there are vaccinations against diseases such as diphtheria, measles, or other dangerous childhood diseases, people can start a family without any problems.
Why is the birth rate significantly higher in poor countries?
Two children are considered to be the gold standard everywhere in the world. But what is interesting, poorer countries still maintain a high birth rate! Why is it so?
Poverty goes hand in hand with ignorance. And uneducated people are not bothered by the fate of our planet; they have to do something to feed hungry necks. In 2021, South Sudan was the poorest country in the world.[i] And do you know what the average birth rate is there? Between 2009 and 2019, it was an average of 4.62 children per woman. Is it that Sudanese women are extra fertile? No, is not. It is a combination of various factors, such as the still presence of child marriages, women giving birth at a very young age, and also social and religious background.
What do Taiwan and Monaco have in common?
Now let’s look at the country with the lowest birth rate. In 2021 it was Taiwan with 1.07 children per woman[ii], compared to how many women of childbearing age live there. The low birth rate can be attributed to the economic crisis and the social and cultural background. In Taiwan, religion does not play such a prominent role in fertility as in South Sudan.
And then let’s look at Monaco. In 2021, only 6.63 children per 1,000 inhabitants were born there[iii]. And that’s very little. However, Monaco is one of the richest countries in the world! Why are people there afraid to have children? Monaco due to its small size and the fact that most residents do not live there permanently is a non-classical example. However, it is a trend in the developed countries of Northern Europe (Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Norway) that the birth rate is falling rapidly. It is a paradox that the more developed the country, the lower the birth rate.
Cultural background plays a role
As we have indicated, education contributes a large part to birth rates. The more educated people are and have access to information, the more aware they are of their own families.
The social and cultural background (in patriarchal cultures[iv]) plays a huge role. People tend to follow traditional patterns. It should also be added that women’s rights are also lagging behind in such less developed countries. A woman usually does not have access to contraception and is required to be fertile in order to provide the man with a traditional family.
Religion as a coffin nail
From time immemorial, people have tended to flee to different religions, cults, and deities. From prehistory, through ancient Egypt, and China, to the coming of Christ and the emergence of “modern” religions, people tried to find the meaning of life in something extraterrestrial, to know their destiny, to know the meaning of life, and to believe in something.
With the writing of the greatest religious books of all time – the Bible (Christian), the Torah (Jewish), and the Koran (Muslim), people began to interpret religion in practice and follow it in practical life. These books have been written for millennia in the past when overpopulation was not an issue.
The problem is that religion has not modernized much over the thousands of years, and if so, it is minimal. We can keep our faith, but we don’t have to live like 2000 years ago. There is no need to misunderstand, people can be both believers and educated to understand that there is not so much space in the world anymore.
The problem is the extremely conservative offshoots of religion (which we often see, for example in Muslims), where education is outweighed by faith and its blind following.
What do the data tell us?
According to data back to 2017, the average Muslim family had 2.9 children, a Christian family had 2.6 children, and a family that does not extremely believe in any religion is 2.2 children[v]. It should be added that the data has changed since then, with the Muslim community currently being the fastest growing birth rate community.
One of the many common features (conservative Muslims, Jews, and Amish) is a large family. These people live their daily lives as dictated by religion. This means contraception is bad, abortions are unacceptable, and many children are a blessing from God.
But can anyone be blamed for wanting to live virtuously or traditionally? In a diplomatic society, this is unacceptable; at most, we can think in our minds that having many children is irresponsible these days.
However, even people with large families, whether religious, should consider what they give the world, what education they will give their children, and whether they will lead them to modern life or force them to cling to old traditions.
We live longer thanks to the better health care
Medical progress over the last 200 years is really marked. Life expectancy and quality of life are increasing every year. In 2019, the average life expectancy in the world was 72.6 years. Did you know that this was the average life expectancy in Norway as early as 1950?[vi]
Not surprisingly, developed and rich nations have much longer life expectancy than poor third world countries, which still struggle with high neonatal mortality, where people die from banal diseases, infections, malaria, and others.
Life expectancy has increased by 30 to 40 years since the Middle Ages![vii] What we owe especially science and medicine. That’s great news, but … First of all, increasing life expectancy doesn’t mean there are only healthy and vital elderly people in the world.
On the contrary, the quality of life continues to decline with age, and 90% of older people suffer from some chronic diseases. This puts a strain on the health system and it can be said that people live longer but not better. It is mainly caused by the epidemic of obesity, diabetes, and the development of other civilization diseases.
[i] https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/263dcfdb91c64e8bba02530fdebe7425
[ii] https://www.statista.com/statistics/268083/countries-with-the-lowest-fertility-rates/#:~:text=In%202021%2C%20the%20fertility%20rate,the%20lowest%20fertility%20rate%20worldwide.&text=The%20fertility%20rate%20is%20the,bearing%20age%20in%20a%20country.
[iii] https://www.indexmundi.com/monaco/birth_rate.html#:~:text=Birth%20rate%3A%206.63%20births%2F1%2C000%20population%20(2021%20est.)
[iv] https://fairygodboss.com/career-topics/patriarchal-cultures#:~:text=Patriarchy%20%E2%80%94%20a%20word%20literally%20meaning,in%20all%20aspects%20of%20society.
[v] https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/04/06/why-muslims-are-the-worlds-fastest-growing-religious-group/#:~:text=Muslim%20women%20have%20an%20average,fertility%20exceeds%20non%2DMuslim%20fertility.
[vi] https://ourworldindata.org/life-expectancy
[vii] https://pophealthmetrics.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12963-016-0089-x