South China Morning Post

November 17, 2005

Ignorance of fertility problems costing HK

By Barclay Crawford

Hong Kong could double its birthrate - the lowest in the developed world - if couples were more aware of fertility treatments and sought help before it was too late.

A survey by the Hong Kong Society of Reproductive Medicine has revealed only 28 per cent of couples realise they are considered infertile if they have not conceived a child after one year of trying, and less than a third actively seek help immediately to remedy the problem.

The society is urging couples to realise the importance of age in fertility and calling for an education campaign to try to halt the slumping birthrate.

Clement Ho Wing-chiu said the figures were particularly worrying because couples were marrying later and usually trying for children in their 30s - but not realising that this is a time when natural fertility drops off and there is little room for error.

For those couples over the age of 36, the success of treatment falls to just 12.3 per cent for every attempt, with half of them overestimating their chances of success, figures from the society show.

"If all those people [who do not actively seek fertility treatment] were to do it, we could see the Hong Kong birthrate double," Dr Ho said.

"Most people don't realise they are infertile and delay treatment and then they may want to pursue their career and it falls by the wayside."

Dr Ho said he was not surprised by the lack of public awareness found in the telephone survey conducted by Chinese University because doctors were seeing ignorance about fertility issues everyday in clinics.

"We urge people who are experiencing problems to do some research, see a doctor or do some research on the internet."

Hong Kong's birth rate fell from 1.4 per cent in 1988 to just 0.93 per cent in 2004 - a drop of 34 per cent in 16 years, according to the State of Population Report 2005, giving the city the lowest birthrate in the world.

Ken Dychtwald, who recently completed a study on the future of retirement globally for HSBC, said there could be some correlation between the low birthrate and the fact that Hong Kong also has the oldest citizens.

The study found the city's population had a particularly strong work ethic and overwhelming desire to retire wealthy and healthy - far exceeding the rest of the world - which could have a bearing on the fertility rate.

"This is going on across the world but Hong Kong has really become a model for the 21st century," Mr Dychtwald said. "If nothing is done the burden of the ageing society has the potential to crush the world of the young."

Mr Dychtwald said there needed to be more incentives for families to reverse the decline in fertility. But he said Hong Kong was better placed than other countries with low birth rates, such as Japan, because there was a ready supply of immigrants from China on the doorstep.