Cuba Approves Plan to Boost Birth Rate

Cuba is encouraging its rapidly aging population to have more babies, reports state-run media.

The daily Granma newspaper reported that President Raul Castro called the communist island's graying population "one of the greatest challenges facing the nation because of its impact on social, economic and family life."

Low Birth Rates can Actually Pay Off in the US and Other Countries
It actually pays to have fewer children, a global study from the University of California, Berkeley, and the East-West Center in Hawaii suggests.

Castro's cabinet has adopted a slate of policies to boost the fertility rate, including financial incentives, the daily reported.

The government also announced plans to increase care for the elderly, Granma wrote.

By 2027, the number of deaths in Cuba could surpass births, and overall population will not only get older, but also smaller, a state official said at the meeting.

Women With Kidney Disease Who Start Dialysis After Conception Have Better Live Birth Rates
A new study suggests that women with advanced kidney disease who start dialysis after conception of their babies have improved chances of live birth.

Lower birth rates and a steady stream of migrants leaving the island has caused the population to drop 11.2 to 11.1 million in the last decade, according to census data.

Around 45,000 Cubans have left the island every year in the last decade, official statistics show.

Preterm Birth Rate in the US Down to Its Lowest in 15 Years
The overall preterm birth rate in the United States has fallen to its lowest rate in 15 years according to the March of Dimes 2013 Premature Birth Report Card.

Cuba currently has 2.4 million people over the age of 60, a demographic, which, by 2045, is expected to make up more than a third of the island's population, posing serious economic challenges.

Officials said limited access to housing, the high costs of child care and a lack of family support services have contributed to the low fertility rate.

US Teen Birth Rate Drops
US teen birth rates have dropped to a record low, said the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Source-AFP