If it feels like you’re seeing babies and pregnant women a lot more than usual, then that’s because you actually are, as new statistics prove that we’re officially in the midst of a baby boom!
New HSE figures show that 3,000 more babies were born in 2021 compared to 2020, which is the first incline in the Irish birth rate since 2009.
The timing of these figures suggests that the Covid-19 pandemic and the many lockdown periods might have played a role in the number of babies that were born last year.
People were spending an unusually large amount of time surrounded by their family and loved ones, when it felt like the world was falling apart. We saw the case figures rising on the news each night, we heard about the dwindling hospital beds and we tuned into funerals on our little screens.
During a surreal and unprecedented time, many people decided to take the plunge, expanding their families and growing their brood with a brand new baby to adore, care for and distract themselves with.
Speaking about this new increase in our birth rate, leading sociologist Jo Murphy Lawless of NUI Galway said, “People lined the routes at funerals and wept. There is no way that people could not be affected by this. I think a generous impulse and a generosity around life has come out of it,” she explained when speaking to Independent.ie.
Meanwhile, Adele Bergin, associate research professor in the ESRI, said that this increase in our birth rate will have a positive impact on society as a whole. “Higher birth rates would lead to a higher natural increase in the population which, in turn, will help boost the potential labour force in the future,” she explained when speaking to the publication.
So, if you have a little one of the way, now you know at least that they'll be in good company!
