I read on an internet site that one in six couples in India is infertile. I don’t know how reliable this figure is, but worldwide, doctors agree - infertility is increasing, quite apart from all those national population control programs and  the declining populations of developing countries.

Many conditions of modern life can make you infertility - exposure to pollutants when you were in the womb, or food additives, or MSG, or obesity, or diabetes, among many other things. For men in the software field, working with laptops placed on their laps or taking certain drugs may kill sperm, or make them less motile - which means they may not be able to ’swim’ through the vagina to reach the egg.

For women, postponing marriage and childbearing are often bad choices. Women bear children most easily in the late teens or early twenties, and their babies tend to be healthier than babies of older mums. If you put your career ahead of your baby, you may find it very difficult to have a baby when you finally feel ready for motherhood.

I know many couples struggling to conceive. It’s one of those things that you never think will happen to you. But many of us will have to face it, and even if we have a child already conceiving a second time may be difficult. Many of us will spend years going through expensive and unpleasant fertility treatments before conceiving, or opting for adoption (incidentally, these couples are often very happy), or chosing to live with childlessness.

Medindia has more on  infertility:

1. How much do you know about it? A quiz on infertility

2. Interview with Dr. Kamala Selvaraj - infertility treatment pioneer in India

3. Causes of male infertility

4. Chemicals in food and cleaning products put unborn boys at risk for infertility later in life.