Vol. 1, Issue 6  ‣ September 2024

Table of Contents

The birthrate in the United States has hit a new record low, according to an analysis of 2023 birth certificate data published this past spring by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Last year’s slowdown marks an end to the uptick in new births that began during the COVID-19 pandemic. At least 3,591,328 babies were born in the U.S. in 2023, down 2% from the 3,667,758 born in 2022. Prior to the pandemic, U.S. birthrates continued to decline with an average of about 2% fewer babies each year.

This is on par with the global birthrate, which fell from 4.84 in 1950 to 2.23 in 2021. Predictions point to a continuing drop in birth rates to 1.59 in 2100.

Figure 1. Number of live births and general fertility rates: United States, final 2000–2022 and provisional 2023

“What we are experiencing now, and have been experiencing for decades, is something that we have not seen before in human history, which is a large-scale, cross-national, cross-cultural shift towards preferring and having smaller families,” said Dr. Jennifer D. Sciubba, a demographer and author of 8 Billion and Counting: How Sex, Death, and Migration Shape Our World.

The birth rate is one of the most important determinants of a country’s population growth, potentially impacting policy decisions about the health system, education, and economy.¹

A previous analysis by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation published in the Lancet in 2020 predicted that the world population will peak in 2064 at around 9.7 billion and then decline to 8.8 billion by 2100. Another projection by the UN World Population Prospects 2022 predicted world population to peak at 10.4 billion in the 2080s.

“Regardless of the exact timing of peak world population, it will likely begin declining in the second half of the century," Sciubba said, "with dramatic geopolitical, economic and societal consequences.”

While we wait to see if these predictions are correct or not, count back nine months, and it's worth noting that most conceptions occur in the fall and winter. That matches up with the CDC’s data suggesting that August and September are among the most popular birth months. 

In an ongoing effort to protect all newborns, Hardy Diagnostics continues to create innovative products to aid in women’s health care. One of Hardy’s most unique and colorful products to detect Group B Streptococcus in pregnant women is Strep B Carrot Broth™ One-Step (Cat. no. Z40). In the United States, Group B Streptococcus or GBS is a leading cause of meningitis, pneumonia, and bloodstream infections in a newborn’s first three months of life. 

Two to three in every 50 cases of newborn GBS infections are fatal. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the CDC, and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that pregnant women should be screened for GBS colonization between 36 and 38 weeks of gestation.

Click here to learn more about how the latest guidelines and detection methods are improving outcomes for newborns at risk of GBS infections.

Sources:

1 Grundy E, Murphy M. Demography and public health. In: Detels R, Gulliford M, Karim QA, Tan CC, editors. Oxford textbook of global public health. 6th ed. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 718–35. 2015.

Strep B Carrot Broth™ One-Step

Strep B Carrot Broth™ One-Step is a selective and differential medium which is intended for the detection of Group B Streptococcus (GBS), also known as Streptococcus agalactiae, from anovaginal specimens collected from pregnant women. The medium is used as an aid in the qualitative determination of GBS colonization in pregnant women. The color change reaction from white to orange is representative of a positive result for presence of hemolytic GBS.

Our one-step test is an improvement over conventional methods by increasing sensitivity, decreasing turn-around time, and lowering overall cost. Positives require no follow up testing!

Advantages of Strep B Carrot Broth™ One-Step:

Advantages of GBS Detect™:

GBS Detect™ is recommended for the isolation and differentiation by enhanced hemolysis of detection of gamma-hemolytic (non-hemolytic) Group B Streptococcus from GBS enrichment broth procedures.

Thank you to all who came to visit us at
ADLM in Chicago in July. See you next year!

Streptococcus agalactiae (Group B Strep) and Neonatal Infections

Group B Streptococcus (GBS), or Streptococcus agalactiae, is a leading cause of neonatal infections such as sepsis, pneumonia, and meningitis. Rapid and accurate detection is critical in preventing these life-threatening conditions, especially during the perinatal period.

Carrot Broth's Unique Role in GBS Detection

Carrot Broth™ is a selective enrichment broth specifically designed to enhance the detection of GBS in clinical samples. Its formulation, rich in nutrients, supports the growth of GBS, while its color-changing properties enable easy identification, with GBS colonies producing an orange pigmentation.

See our collection of Carrot BrothTM and Prepared Culture Media Videos and Catalogs

Carrot Broth™ One-Step: Group B Strep Testing for Pregnant Women

Our exclusive Step B Carrot Broth™ One-Step system allows for faster results for the cultivation and identification of beta-hemolytic strains of Group B Streptococcus in pregnant women.

Megan Roesner

CLINICAL PRODUCT MANAGER

Megan is an award-winning journalist, marketer, and current Clinical Microbiology Laboratory Marketing Product Manager at Hardy Diagnostics, brings over 20 years of experience in brand management, healthcare marketing, and communications to her role.

If you have any suggestions for content, a comment, or a question, please contact Megan here.

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