A new study from the National Bureau of Economic Research found birth rates drop off significantly in the months following temperature surges to 80 degrees Fahrenheit – leading researchers to conclude global warming could have a dramatic effect on the sex lives of humans.
The study, called "Maybe Next Month? Temperature Shocks, Climate Change, and Dynamic Adjustments in Birth Rates," looked at the effects of temperature changes on the numbers of babies born in American between 1931 and 2010.
And the findings? Get an air conditioner, researchers write.
"We find that additional days above 80 degrees Fahrenheit cause a large decline in birth rates approximately eight to 10 months later," the report authors wrote. "The initial decline is followed by a partial rebound in births over the next few months, implying that populations can mitigate the fertility cost of temperature shocks by shifting conception month."
As Breitbart noted, the researchers then drew a link between climate change and birth rates, concluding the former does indeed impact the latter.
"This dynamic adjustment helps explain the observed decline in birth rates during the spring and subsequent increase during the summer," the study continues. "The lack of a full rebound suggests that increased temperatures due to climate change may reduce population growth rates in the coming century. As an added cost, climate change will shift even more births to the summer months when third trimester exposure to dangerously high temperatures increases. Based on our analysis of historical changes in the temperature-fertility relationship, we conclude air conditioning could be used to substantially offset the fertility costs of climate change."