Dr. Marc Siegel reacts to a new study on smartphone risks for children and a CNN host implying that President Trump dozed at a Cabinet meeting. He also previews his new Fox Nation special 'Miracles Among Us,' based on his book.

America's baby bust may have an unlikely culprit: the iPhone. 

A new study suggests Apple's smartphone may account for as much as half of the decline in U.S. birth rates following its 2007 launch, with researchers arguing the device fundamentally changed how young people socialize, date and form relationships.

The working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research, entitled, "Is the iPhone Birth Control? Causal Evidence from AT&T’s 2007–2011 Carrier Monopoly," says that the iPhone may be the reason for 33% to 52% of the decrease in the general fertility rate among 15–44-year-old women between 2007 and 2011. 

SCREEN TIME BLAMED FOR CROSS-CULTURAL DROP IN BIRTH RATES 

A young woman lies on the bed with a smartphone in her hand. (Photo: Elisa Schu/picture alliance via Getty Images)

"Overall, the diffusion of the iPhone explains 33–52% of the decline in the general fertility rate among women aged 15–44," the paper reads. "National-survey evidence on time use and sexual behavior is consistent with the iPhone reducing in-person interactions, increasing pornography use, and reducing sexual frequency."

The working paper, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, said that the general fertility rate for the U.S. has fallen by 22% since 2007.

The iPhone's launch in 2007 created a unique opportunity for researchers to study its impact. From 2007 to 2011, the iPhone was available only through AT&T, so areas with better AT&T coverage got access to the device earlier than areas with little or no coverage.

The working paper found that teen birth rates fell 4.5%–8% because of iPhone diffusion, and birth rates among women 20–24 fell 3.2%–6.6%. 

Time spent with friends dropped 69% among 15–19 year-olds, and the working paper also found that searches for "porn" more than doubled over the study period from 2007 to 2011, with the paper stating that "the iPhone provides more access to pornography, which can substitute for partnered sex."

AMERICANS ARE HAVING FEWER BABIES AS BIRTH RATE HITS HISTORIC LOW, CDC REVEALS

A 12-year-old boy plays with his personal phone outside a school in Barcelona, Spain, on June 17, 2024. (Emilio Morenatti/AP Photo)

The paper also suggested that the iPhone "substitutes for in-person interaction, displacing the peer time in which most sexual encounters occur," and also suggested that the device makes information about contraceptive practices and products more readily available. 

"We do not claim that the iPhone is the sole cause of the post-2007 decline, nor that no policy lever can move the trajectory," the paper reads. "But over the 2008–2011 window that our design identifies, our estimates imply that the introduction of the modern smartphone played a sizable role in the decline in U.S. births. The mechanism evidence suggests this operates through the formation of relationships and the time and inclination for partnered intimacy, not the cost of raising children."

GLOBAL FERTILITY RATES MAY BECOME TOO LOW TO SUSTAIN POPULATION LEVELS, STUDY SAYS

A pregnant woman stands for a portrait in Dallas on May 18, 2023. Provisional statistics released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on April 25, 2024, show U.S. births fell last year by about 76,000 to just under 3.6 million, marking a return to a long-term decline after pandemic fluctuations. (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Rachel del Guidice is a reporter for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to rachel.delguidice@fox.com.

Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox.

By entering your email and clicking the Subscribe button, you agree to the Fox News 
        Privacy Policy
       and 
        Terms of Use
      , and
      agree to receive content and promotional communications from Fox News. You understand that you can
      opt-out at any time.

Subscribed

You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter!