Birth reports fall for the first time since 2010
November 14, 2017 10h00 AM | Last Updated: November 14, 2017 06h37 PM
Birth reports in Brazil amounted to 2.79 million in 2016, with a decrease of 5.1% in relation to 2015 figure, 2.95 million. That is the first reduction observed since 2010, even below the 2011 result, 2.80 million. Among the states, Roraima recorded a slight increase of 3.9%, as reported today by the IBGE’s Survey of Vital Statistics, released today.
“That change probably results from several factors”, says the reasercher Cristiane Moutinho. She adds that “besides a growing tendency to have children at an older age, many families may have felt apprehensive because of the zika virus epidemics that spread in the country between 2015 and 2016, and to which several cases of microcephaly in babies were associated. In the state of Roraima, specific factors such as the arrival or Venezuelan immigrants may have contributed to the increase of births. Now we need more studies and data combined with those from the Ministry of Health in order to analyze cases in all our Federation Units.”
Marriages decrease, divorces increase
One of the highlights in the survey is the decrease in marriages, by 3.7%, in comparison with the 2015 figure. This time 20 Federation Units and three states in the Northeast Region (Piauí, Alagoas and Paraíba) account for the most significant changes downwards, about -10%. Divorces recond an increase of 4.7% against the result of 2015. Shared custody of minor children has grown from 12.9% to 16.9% in the period.
Text (in Portuguese): Eduardo Peret
Photo: Pedro Vidal
Graph: Simone Mello
