Birth Rates Plummet In Europe

                 With deaths outstripping births in some nations,
                 the continent's population grew by just 266,000 last
                 year amid fears of a fertility crisis

                 LONDON -- Fewer babies were born in Europe last
                 year than at any time since World War II, and in Britain
                 the annual increase in population has virtually ground to
                 a halt, the Sunday Times has reported.

                 Figures released by Eurostat, the European Union's
                 statistics office, show that population growth in Europe
                 last year slowed to just 266,000, about the same
                 number by which India's population grows every six
                 days.

                 Government figures predict the European population will
                 peak and begin to decrease by 2036. Deaths already
                 outstrip births in Germany, Italy and Sweden.

                 The figures also reveal that Britain is relying increasingly
                 on immigration to swell its population.

                 Last year, immigration accounted for almost three times
                 as much population growth as natural births.

                 Across Europe, immigration added 717,000 inhabitants
                 last year.

                 The United Nations population division recently warned
                 that Europe would need up to 150 million immigrants by
                 2025 to maintain the present ratio between workers and
                 the retired.

                 The statistics will fuel concerns of a fertility crisis
                 sweeping Britain.

                 "The nightmare scenario of the human race waking one
                 morning and realising it cannot reproduce is not just
                 scaremongering,' said Dr Simon Fishel, a pioneer of
                 infertility treatment.

                 "If we carry on like this, it will be a reality."

                 Experts believe factors such as stress, pollution and an
                 increase in certain sexually-transmitted diseases are
                 damaging British couples' ability to conceive,
                 exacerbating the growing phenomenon of women
                 choosing not to become mothers.

                 Studies have shown that average sperm counts in Britain
                 have fallen by almost half from 1938 levels and are
                 continuing to decline as fast as 2 per cent a year.

                 Fertility specialists are also concerned at the dramatic
                 rise in the number of people at risk from what is
                 becoming known as the "silent epidemic" of chlamydia, a
                 symptomless sexually-transmitted disease that can block
                 Fallopian tubes, leading to infertility.

                 It is the fastest-growing sexual infection among young
                 people in Britain, sparking fears of a future infertility time
                 bomb.

                 However, it is social change that experts believe is the
                 most significant factor in declining birth rates.

                 "There is a lot of evidence that there is a problem with
                 falling sperm counts, but you have to assume that the fall
                 in birth rates is mainly due to choice and increased use
                 of contraception," said Dr Stewart Irvine, of the Medical
                 Research Council.

                 Increasingly, career women are delaying having children,
                 making fertility problems more likely.

                 Evidence is also emerging that stress and long hours are
                 leading to a loss of libido among working women. A
                 survey of 2,000 women found that two out of five
                 reported chronic loss of libido because of job stress.

                      Adapted from The Straits Times, 17 Jan 2000.