INTRODUCTION
This paper
talks about fertility, its problems and solution to fertility issues or control.
On the perspective of fertility we will be talking about death rate, birth Rate
among others. The issue of fertility and population cannot be over emphasized
as they both tend to complement each other i.e. fertility increase or decrease
can lead to a corresponding increase and decrease in the population which could
be termed population change.
Further
more, factors influencing population change is also emphasized and this is the
subsequent or frequent movement of people in and out of a country which could
be termed immigration {movement of people into a country} and emigration
{movement of people from a Country}.
In
Nigeria, there is a tremendous increase in the number of birth per family
resulting to over population thereby stressing the available scarce natural
resources of the country. Based on statistics there is need to curtail and
control population growth rate in other to establish an optimum population that
is in equilibrium with the available resources so as to ensure a stable and
rising economy.
As
a health educator, our main objectives is to create awareness by establishing a
degree of sensitization of the public against high fertility rate as well as
the need for family planning in order to prevent the re-occurrence of pass
problems by studying and solving the present pervading population problems for
future benefits.
Finally
there are various measures to be taken as regards fertility and population
change. These measures include government policies, family planning, and use of
contraceptives, abortion and sterilization. By so doing fertility can be
controlled and population change kept at equilibrium so as to ensure a healthy
living and economic boom.
Fertility
and population change
Fertility: There are
varying perspectives with which fertility can be defined therefore fertility
can be seen as a condition, degree or state of being fertile. It can also be
define as the birth rate of a given population. Fertility also called maternity,
is gotten from the Latin word laetitia letitia which means fertile, joy or ecstasy thus fertility can be define
as the ability of an individual to reproduce {i.e. the production of life
birth} or the capable-ness of a male individual to impregnate a female
individual {able to produce mature sperm}.
Fertility measurement
The
fertility potential/rate of a country like other terms in population concept
can be accurately measured and estimated. Fertility measurement is the accurate
and explicit determination and examination of the fertility potential of a
country. In measuring fertility, necessary data ought to be collected and used.
The collection of necessary data for the necessary measurement of fertility
includes:
v Census: This is the
official head count of given population; through census the fertility of a given
country can be measured or estimated as it gives necessary data for fertility
measurement. this is possible because via census the number of fertile women
and children under age five(5) can be estimated and then imputed to determine
the fertility rate of a given country or nation. Thus in fertility measurement
census helps collect useful data for fertility measurement.
v Vital
registration system: This is a properly functioning system with high a coverage that
does not systematically under or over represents a particular sub groups. It is
a gold standard for obtaining vital events statistics. The vital registration
system helps to establish the number of births and prenatal events, population
size and others thus with the vital registration system can help us gather the
data that will help us in measuring fertility. The records produce by this
registration process serve a dual function.
v National
respective sample surveys e.g. world fertility survey {WFS}, demographic and
health surveys {DHS} e.t.c. are some useful means of collecting fertility data
necessary for fertility measurement.
Data derived from these sources are used to
establish the fertility potential of a country or nation as well as the whole
world.
Example:
A formula of imputation is identified;
Fertility potential = number of children (under age
5years) × 1000
number of women (age 15-49years)
Effects of
Fertility
The effects of fertility shall be categorized into two areas and they include the below stated effects;
v Effects of
high fertility
v Effects of
low fertility
Effects of
high fertility
1. High
fertility can lead to greater pressure on the natural resources of country.
2. High
fertility leads to an uneven distribution of natural resources on the
population
3. High
fertility will affect the economic growth of a country by increasing the
productive output in the long run.
4. High
fertility leads to critical human capital investment that is why parents
consciously decide to have fewer children in order to invest more per child.
5. High
fertility leads to resources depletion {i.e less financial and time investment
per child}, as it has been found out that children from large families attain
less in school.
6. High
fertility leads to a greater level or number of unemployment in a country.
7. High
fertility leads to competition on the natural resources for survival purpose.
8. High
fertility rate leads to population growth, which under certain circumstances,
can cause a condition known as over population and over population is not a
function of the number or density of
individuals, but rather the number of individuals compared to the resources
they need to survive.
Note: when
the fertility rate is above the replacement level, leads to population growth
and potential over population, which can have negative consequences.
Effects of low
fertility
1. Low
fertility affects the economic growth of a country by reducing the productive
output.
2. Low
fertility leads to a low pressure on the natural resources of a country thus
leading to economic waste.
3. Low
fertility leads to a lower level of unemployment of country and this on the
other hand stands positive as employment thrives
4. Low
fertility also helps in balancing or reducing the human capital investment of
the country.
5. Low
fertility helps in resources management and conservation.
6. Low
fertility can lead to an even distribution of natural resources on the
population of a country.
Factors
affecting fertility
There are different factors that can
affect fertility and they include age, environment, lifestyle, health status,
education, culture and tradition, industrialization or advancement in
technology, and heredity.
Age: It’s currently believed that women are born with between 1 and 2
million eggs, with the number decreasing of eggs in the throughout life. A
gradual decline in fertility begins around age 32 and continues to decrease
rapidly after age 37 because of the reduction in the number quality or eggs in
the ovaries. The lower number of eggs leads to changes in hormone levels, which
further reduces a woman’s fertility. This factor causes a decrease in
fertility, when an old woman attempts to have a child. On the other hand, a
younger woman has the ability to have more children because of the high number
of eggs. Age plays a vital role on female fertility.
Lifestyle: the sperm
can be affected by lifestyle factors such as smoking, drinking alcohol, and
taking drugs. Even increase in temperature of the testicles affects fertility.
The best degree of temperature is 34.5 degrees, which is just below normal body
temperature. Cooler environment is needed to produce the best-quality sperm
e.g. working in a hot environment, such as a bakery etc or sitting for long
periods has been linked to raise testicle temperature. This may affect sperm’s
ability to mature leading to poorer sperm quality and a temporary drop in sperm
production.
Some form of exercise when
excessively done, affects sperm counts and interfere with ovulation in women.
Cycling causes poor sperm quality, low sperm count and less mobile sperm. The
cycling is good, when it is excess, it causes harm. Also, staying at a healthy
weight helps to keep your sperm in good condition. You can do this by having a
healthy, balanced diet and exercising regularly. Being overweight (BMI of 25 or
higher) may lower the quality and quantity of the sperm.
In women, weight loss or low weight
may affect the hormonal signals that the brain sends to a woman’s ovaries. In
mild cases, a woman’ ovaries may still make and release eggs, but the lining of
the uterus may not be ready to have a fertilized egg implant because of
inadequate hormone levels. In more serious cases, the woman’s ovaries may not
produce eggs at all. They may have irregular or no menstrual cycles.
Smoking reduces fertility in men and
women. In fact, the fertility of a -30 -year old woman who smokes is on par
with a 40 year smoker. Smoking decreases the flow of oxygen to all your organs,
including the uterus and ovaries. This results in an increased rate of egg loss
and higher rates of genetic damage to the eggs, and poorly functioning
fallopian tubes. It also causes higher rate of ectopic pregnancy and an
unhealthy environment within the uterus that contributes to higher rates of
miscarriage.
Health Status: having auto-immune disorder: Diseases such as impus, diabetes,
thyroid disease and rheumatoid arthritis can interfere with fertility.
Fallopian tube disease accounts for about 20 percent of infertility cases
treated, according to RESOLVE: The National infertility Association. Tubal
scaring or blockage is often caused by sexually transmitted disease pelvic
inflammatory disease etc.
Environment: Prolonged exposure to high mental stress, high temperatures,
chemicals, radiation, or heavy electromagnetic or microwave emissions may
reduce a woman’ fertility.
Heredity: Endometriosis is a condition which is hereditary. It is a
condition in which tissue from the uterine lining grows outside the uterus, on
the ovaries, fallopian tubes, bladder, or bowel. Research indicates that it
accounts for between 5 and 30 percent of female infertility.
What is population?
The geographers see population as
the total number of organisms living together in a given geographical area or
territory over a given period of time. Population is also the summation of all
the organisms of the group or species that live in the same geographical area
and have the capacity of interbreeding.
In ecology the population of a
certain species in a certain area is estimated using the Lincoln index. The
area that is used to define a sexual population is define as the area where
interbreeding is potentially possible between any pair within the area. The
probability of interbreeding is greater than the probability of cross breeding
with individuals from other areas. Under normal conditions, breeding is
substantially more common within the areas than across the border.
In sociology, population refers to a
collection of human beings and demography is a social science which entails the
statistical study of human population.
Theory of population
According to the Malthusian theory
of population, population increases in a geometric progression or ratio,
whereas the resources being scarce tend to increase at an arithmetic
progression or ratio. This disharmony would lead to widespread of poverty and
starvation which can only be checked by natural occurrences such as diseases,
high infant mortality, famine, war or moral res. His major contribution was on
the agricultural sector. According to this theory, there are two steps to
control population and they are preventative/preventive checks and positive
checks.
Preventative/preventive
checks
mean control in birth rate, and the use of different methods to control birth.
Preventive/preventative checks help regulate the population of a nation as it
aims to achieve an optimum population with a balanced resource distribution as
it gradually check the birth rate of given population.
Positive
checks
are those natural phenomena used to control population for example war, famine,
chaos and earthquakes serves as a positive check for regulating or controlling
population growth or increase rate.
Epidemiological
Transition Theory by Omran
Abdel
Omran in 1971 propounded a transition theory that best explain how population
from the early time transcends through time. The epidemiological transition
theory is phase of development witnessed by a sudden and stark increase in
population growth rates brought about by the medical innovation in disease or
sickness therapy and treatment, followed by
a re-leveling of population growth from subsequent declines in fertility
rates. “Epidemiological transition theory “accounts for the replacement of
infectious disease by chronic disease over time due to expanded public health
and sanitation.
Theory: Omran
divided the epidemiological transition theory into three phases, in the last of
which chronic diseases replaced infection as primary cause of death. These
three phases are as follows;
1. The age of
famine and pestilence: where mortality is high and fluctuating, precluding sustained
population growth, with low and variable life expectancy, vacillating between
20 and 40 years.
2. The age of
receding pandemics: where mortality progressively declines with the rate of decline accelerating
as epidemic peaks decreasing in frequency. Average life expectancy increase
steadily from about 30 to 50 years. Population growth is sustained and begins to
exponential.
3. The age of
degenerative and man-made diseases: mortality continues to decline and
eventually approach stability at a relative low level. The epidemiological
transition occurs as a country undergoes the process of modernization from developing
nation to developed nation status. The development of modern healthcare, and
medicine like antibiotics, drastically reduces infant mortality rates and
extends average life expectancy which, coupled with subsequent declines in
fertility rates, reflects a transition to chronic and degenerative diseases as
more important cause of death.
Factors
affecting population
There are several factors that can
affect or influence population and some of these factors includes;
1. Birth rate
2. Death rate
3. Migration
4. Natural
disaster
5. War{local
and international}
6. Political
factor/Government policies
v Birth rate: this is the
number of live birth recorded in a calendar year in ratio to the mid-year
population multiplied by a thousand. The birth rate of a given population
largely determines the population sizes of a given country thus a country with
increased or high number of birth is likely to be highly populated or densely
populated.
v Death rate: this is the
direct opposite of birth rate pertaining to the fact that it measures the total
number of deaths in a given location/nation. Death rate can therefore be defined
as the total number of deaths per 1000 of a given population. From the
definition we get to see that an increase in the death rate of a country leads
to a corresponding decrease in the population size just as an increasing
population reflects a decline in the death rate given country.
v Migration: this can be defined as the movement of
persons from one geographical location to another and can be looked from
different perspectives which are immigration and emigration. Migration is a
serious factor in determining the population size of a given geographical
location as people tend to move to different location prior to their immediate
needs and this leads to a fall in the population size of the origin and a
corresponding rise in the population of the destination.
v Natural
disasters: another promising factor that greatly affect the population in
natural disasters. Cases like earth quake, flooding, tsunami, tornado and other
cyclone are disastrous events that greatly reduce the population of given
location as accounts for a large number of death and might also cause
migration.
v War: war both at
the local and international level reduces the population of war zone as people
tend to move from war zone to places of peace and comfort, thus war prompts
migration and indirectly reduces the population of given location either by
migration or deaths {person killed during the war}.
v Government
policies {political factor}: often times the government might set up
policies that restrict movement from and into a country. This really determines
the population size of a country e.g. restricting the movement and
nationalization of citizens in given country can actually maintain the
population size of that country. This can also take the form of quarantine,
making the migration process limited i.e. limiting the number of persons
entering a particular country.
What is population
change?
Population change refers to change
in the number of people during the specific time. The world population has not
been stable. It has increased manifold. This subject is very closely related to
demographics the statistics of how many people there are in a given population.
This is actually due to changes in
the number of births and deaths. For an extremely long period of human history
until one 1800’s the world’ population grow steadily but slowly. Large numbers
of babies were born, but they died early too. This was as there were no proper
health facilities. Sufficient food was not available for all the people.
Farmers were not able to produce enough to meet the food requirements of all
the people. As a result, the total increase in population was very low.
Factors affecting population
change
Population change is as a result of
population growth and several others whether positive or negative. Some of this
factors affecting population change include;
a. Age – sex
structure
b. Birth rate (
crude birth rate)
c. Death rate
(crude death rate)
d. Growth rate
e. Life expectancies
f.
Net migration
v AGE – SEX
STRUCTURE: The structure of the population is defined to be its age and sex composition.
It is usually represented on a population pyramid having the male and female
pats respectively.
The age and
sex structure are important for the following reasons:
- Birth and death vary with age; deaths among children and among the aged are important indicators of the level of development a particular areas has.
- Birth and death vary with age; deaths among children and among the aged are important indicators of the level of development a particular areas has.
- There are diseases and illnesses that are more common with certain age groups and with either the male or female sex; therefore the health care requirements in a population vary with age and sex.
- The Economic State Of A Particular Country Or Area: e.g. the cancer of the breast for female and the prostate cancer for males. Is influenced by the sex and age structure as the labor force and its efficiency is known.
The age-sex
structure affects population change as a result of the higher sex in a
population. If there are more females in such a population, fertile and young,
these tends to be a rise in the population of such an area whereas if there are
more males, the population will grow at a slow rate or no growth at all. The
age-sex structure affects population of any given place.
v BIRTH RATE (CRUDE BIRTH RATE): This
refers to the number of life birth reported in a year divided by the total
mid-year population and multiplied by 1000. It is also referred to as the
“crude birth rate” this is became it usually refers to the total population without
regard to sex or age composition of the population.
If there are more and life births in
a population there tends to be a change in population as an increase will be
experienced. This is made possible by the now available basic amenities in
various communities that aid the survival of life births (neonate survival).
The continuous process of
reproduction brings about a rise in population and if not monitored, it brings
about lack of resources and low survival rate of infants born as medical
attention will be scarce or unavailable.
v DEATH RATE: if is defined as the number of deaths per 1000 estimated in a
mid-year population. It is a measure of the rates at which death occur in a
society. Death can be caused by number of factors which includes:
-
Epidemics
-
Lack of health services
-
Unhealthy diets
-
Susceptibility to diseases etc.
These
factors bring about the occurrence of death in a population as they do not
support life. Death rate brings about a population change where a decline in
the population number will be experienced. Death rate alters the strength of a
population force, its capable to bring about economic development etc. death
rate births a drop of any society or geographical area population number.
v NET
MIGRATION: Migration
involves the inward and outward movement of people in a country or area. This
is as a result of pull and push factors. Push factors are factors that force
people to move out from one place to another e.g. war, famine, natural
disasters etc. while pull factors are those favorable conditions that attract
people to new locations e.g. better employment opportunities, higher standard
of living.
Net migration involves the
difference between emigration and immigration. Emigration involves the movement
of individuals out of a place or country while immigration involves the movement
of individuals into a country or place. Net migration brings about population
change when it is positive i.e. more immigrants move into a country and
negative which is a fall in population of a country which is negative.
v GROWTH RATE: The population size rarely remains the same; it changes over
time. The changes in the total population of a country over tie are expressed
by the parameter growth rate.
It is
calculated by finding the difference in the total population between two dates (e.g.
years) and dividing that difference by the length of time between the two
dates. Thus growth rate expresses the amount of change in the population size
per unit time.
The growth
rate of a population is determined by the rates of birth, death and population
movement in the country. Growth rate can be either positive or negative; it is
positive if the total population has been increasing and negative if there is a
decline in the total population.
Growth rate
affects population as a decrease or increase experienced in the number of
persons living in a country or location.
Recommendations on
fertility and population change
Human population control is the
practice of artificially altering the rate of growth of a human population.
There are various methods to control population change. They are:
1. Family
planning
2. Government
policies
3. Contraceptives.
4. Reducing
infant mortality
5. Abstinence
6. Abortion
v Family Planning: Family planning
which can also be known as fertility control is the means of birth that are
wanted, spaced, according to choice and time to fit in with life’s decision
such as career break, reality. Family planning is a means of controlling birth
by limiting the size of the family to the number that the couple or individual
can conveniently provide for.
Family
planning is the ability of individuals or couples to have the number of
children they want at the time they want them is such a way that wanted birth
superceeds unwanted births with the fullest possible understanding of the
decision they make by doing so as well as assess to the means of meeting those
decisions. In excess, family planning is the number of children you want and
how to plan them.
The means of
family planning could be as a result of: providing adequate nutrition for thee
needed children, for a comfortable housing, for better quality of life, for a
good education, and also to eliminate the need for abortion and its
complications.
v Government Policies: These are law implemented and enforced by the government of a country
to regulate fertility and control population changes. Many countries including
China, India and Singapore was reported in enforcing government policies. In
China, the most significant population control system is the one-child policy
in which with various exceptions, having more than one child is discouraged.
Unauthorized births are punished by fines, although there have allegations of
illegal forced abortions and forced sterilization. The Chinese government
introduced the policy in 1978 to alleviate the social and environmental
problems of China.
According to government officials,
the policy has helped prevent 400 million births. The success of the policy has
been questioned, and reduction in fertility has also been attributed to the
modernization of china.
In India, only those with two or
fewer children are eligible for election to a Gram Panchayat, or local
government.
We two, our two {“Hum do, hamare do” in Hindi} is a slogan
meaning on family, two children and is intended to reinforce the message of
family planning thereby aiding population control. Facilities offered by
government to its employees are limited to two children only. Moreover, India
was the first country to take measures for family planning back in 1951.
In Singapore,
they underwent two major phases in its population control. First to slow and
reverse the baby boom in the post world War II era; then from the 1980’s
onwards to encourage couples to have more children as the birth rate has fallen
below the replacement level fertility.
The anti-Natalist policies
flourished in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Initiatives advocating small families were
launched and developed into “the stop at two programmes”, pushing for two
children families and promoting sterilization.
The policy
was however soon abandoned due to the outing in the general election of the
same year. Eventually, the government became pro-Natalist in the late 1980’s
marked by its “Have three or more plan” in 1987.
Other methods of fertility control
include; Use of Contraceptives, Reducing infant mortality, abstinence and abortion.
It should be noted that, the use of
contraceptives and abstinence falls under family planning methods. While
Reducing infant mortality, abortion and sterilization falls under government
policies, as some government encourages Abortion [Singapore, China
(sterilization)].
Conclusion
Fertility and population change are
interrelated since fertility determinants tends to influence the population
increase or decrease rate. Fertility is the ability of an individual to
reproduce offspring while population is the total number of people living in a
given geographical location. From their respective definition it can be
ascertained that the fertility of a given country largely determine the
population size of the country thus fertility and population change is
interrelated and inter-dependant as both functions for the complete
comprehension of each other.
REFERENCES
Over population in India, retrieved November 12th 2013
United nation millennium project, retrieved June 20th
2009
“Population control: the eugenics connection”
Theresa Wong and Brenda S. A {2003}, fertility and the family: an
over view of pro- natalist population policies in Singapore
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