[ti:Virus Could Lower Already Low US Birth Rates] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report. [00:07.16]The number of births in the United States continued to fall last year. [00:13.16]This led to the fewest U.S. newborns in 35 years, the Associated Press notes. [00:21.88]The number of newborns has been falling for more than 10 years. [00:28.04]And some experts say the coronavirus pandemic [00:32.64]and its effect on the economy will result in even fewer births. [00:40.08]"This unpredictable environment, and concerns about the future, [00:45.04]are going to make women think twice before having children," said Denise Jamieson. [00:52.16]She is a doctor and head of the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics [00:58.08]at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. [01:02.68]The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) [01:06.48]reported the latest birth numbers on May 20. [01:10.56]The report is based on a study of more than 99% of birth records from 2019. [01:20.32]The findings are considered preliminary. [01:24.44]The CDC found the number of births fell to about 3.7 million last year. [01:31.44]This is about one percent less than the number in 2018. [01:39.00]Birth rates continued to fall for teenagers and women in their 20s. [01:45.80]However, for women in their early 40s, the report noted an increase in births. [01:53.48]Experts say there are many reasons for falling birth rates. [01:58.80]Among them are changing ideas about motherhood and family planning. [02:05.48]Many women and couples now delay having children. [02:11.32]Also, once they decide to start a family, they have fewer children. [02:18.92]Experts also say there is good reason to think a weak economy [02:24.52]will result in even lower birth rates. [02:28.96]Aside from a one-year increase in 2014, [02:33.36]U.S. births have been falling every year since 2007. [02:39.44]That year a recession hit the United States. [02:44.32]The drop in births continued even after the economy recovered. [02:51.16]John Santelli is a professor of population and family health [02:57.00]at Columbia University in New York. [03:00.20]He says there are many reasons why economic conditions affect birth rates. [03:08.12]Santelli noted that many jobs are low-paying and unpredictable. [03:14.84]When you combine those kinds of jobs with the high cost of housing [03:20.04]and other living expenses, people think carefully before having children. [03:26.96]Brady Hamilton was the lead author of the CDC report. [03:32.60]The effect of the pandemic, Hamilton said, will not become clear [03:37.84]in hospital maternity wards until late this year or early next year. [03:44.80]Santelli notes it is possible births will increase among some groups. [03:52.76]Getting access to birth control and operations for ending pregnancies [03:58.12]has become more difficult, he said. [04:01.24]He added that couples stuck at home together may have more time for sex. [04:09.20]However, other experts say it is more likely that birth rates will fall. [04:16.20]Hans-Peter Kohler is a fertility researcher at the University of Pennsylvania. [04:23.56]He said the idea that there will be a lot of "coronababies" [04:28.36]is "widely perceived as a myth." [04:32.68]Kohler said that the debate most experts are having [04:37.08]is not about whether there will be a decrease in births, [04:41.44]but whether it will be lasting. [04:44.16]And that's the Health & Lifestyle report. [04:47.72]I'm Anna Matteo. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM