According to the CDC, the US birth rate hit a record low in 2020 to a level that the Brookings Institution calls “considerably below replacement levels for the foreseeable future.” While the US population is still increasing, the rate of growth has slowed dramatically: it dropped 4% from 2019-2020 to 1.6 children per woman.

This episode explores five reasons why I personally think preferences are changing towards fewer or no children:

1. Women have money
2. Motherhood can suck
3. Life is expensive
4. Our worlds are bigger
5. Societal strife