Condoms lie at the world’s top condom maker Karex’s facility in Malaysia on April 23. [REUTERS/YONHAP]
The biggest irony behind Korea’s chronically low birthrate may lie in the bedroom: While people are still having sex, contraception use is often risky, inconsistent or entirely absent.
Nearly four in 10 Korean women in their 20s and 30s do not consistently use contraception during sexual intercourse because many believe that pregnancy "is unlikely to happen," according to a recent report from the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs that was obtained by the JoongAng Ilbo on Monday.
Related Article
The report — with a title that translates roughly to "Korean women’s sexual and reproductive health across life cycles" — surveyed 6,174 women in August and September of last year. The researchers classified the female population into four groups: adolescents aged between 13 and 18; young adults aged 19 to 39; middle-aged women aged 40 to 64; and older women aged 65 or older.
