In a report published on Monday, the U.N.’s health agency estimated that around 17.5% of the global adult population—or 1 in 6 people worldwide—would be affected by infertility in their lifetime.

The WHO analyzed 133 existing studies on infertility, which included data from 1990 to 2021, to come up with the estimate, with the report marking the first time the organization has published research on the prevalence of fertility problems.

Infertility is defined by the WHO as the failure to achieve pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sex.

Rates of infertility were comparable in wealthy and poor regions, the WHO said, with high-income countries having an estimated 17.8% rate of infertility prevalence, while low- and middle-income countries having a reported rate of 16.5%.

Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO’s director-general, said in a statement on Monday that the report showed “infertility does not discriminate.”

“The sheer proportion of people affected show the need to widen access to fertility care and ensure this issue is no longer sidelined in health research and policy, so that safe, effective, and affordable ways to attain parenthood are available for those who seek it,” he said.

As it released its report on Monday, the WHO said that in spite of the magnitude of the global infertility problem, solutions for prevention, diagnosis and treatment remained underfunded and inaccessible to many because of high costs.

In most countries, the organization said, fertility treatments were self-funded out of pocket by patients.

Dr. Pascale Allotey, the WHO’s director of sexual and reproductive health and research described the figures released on Monday as “staggering,” and labeled the high cost of treatments as “a medical poverty trap for all those affected.”

“Better policies and public financing can significantly improve access to treatment and protect poorer households from falling into poverty as a result,” she said.

U.S. infertility

In the U.S., around one in five women of child-bearing age are unable to get pregnant after a year of trying, according to the CDC.

Various underlying issues can contribute toward infertility in both men and women.

In women, infertility can be caused by conditions like polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)—which can stop ovulation—as well as a number of other complications such as having a reduced number of eggs or blocked fallopian tubes.

Infertility in men can be brought on by a low sperm count, and hormonal or genetic disorders.

According to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 2% of all babies born in the United States every year are conceived using assisted reproductive technologies (ART) like IVF, donor eggs or frozen embryos.

A third of American adults say they have used fertility treatments or know someone who has, according to a 2018 study from the Pew Research Center.  

IVF, which fertilizes an egg outside of the womb before implanting it into the uterus, is the most commonly used ART in the United States.

However, with varying success rates and an average price tag of $15,000 to $30,000 for a single cycle, the fertility treatment can be an expensive gamble or remain completely out of reach for many American couples.

Last month, a poll of 1,000 American women carried out by Connecticut-based fertility benefits provider WIN found that 30% would not consider treatments like egg freezing, IVF or surrogacy because they were too expensive.