Korea's multiple birth rate has been reported as the second highest in the world. The birth rate for triplets or more recorded the highest in the world.
According to a report published on the 25th by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs (KIHASA) titled 'Trends and Challenges of Multiple Births in Korea', the multiple birth rate in Korea (the number of multiple births of twins or more per 1,000 total births) was recorded at 26.9 per 1,000 total births as of 2023.
This is the second highest figure among 27 major countries included in the world multiple birth rate data (HMBD), following Greece (29.5). It was 11.4 more than the overall country average (15.5).
In particular, the 'high-order multiples' birth rate, which refers to triplets or more, stands at 0.59, ranking first in the world. This significantly surpasses Greece (0.37) in second place and reached three times the overall country average (0.21).
Despite the deepening low birth rate, multiple births continue to increase. According to Statistics Korea data, the total fertility rate halved from 1.48 in 2000 to 0.72 in 2023, while the number of multiple births rose from 10,768 to 12,622 during the same period. The proportion of multiple births among total births surged more than three times, from 1.7% to 5.5%.
A notable characteristic of households with multiple births is the increasing age of parents. From 2000 to 2023, the average age of multiple birth fathers increased by 5.0 years, while for mothers it increased by 5.7 years, reflecting a larger rise than that of singleton parents (fathers increased by 4.5 years, mothers by 5.1 years).
Multiple births also pose higher health risks. The gestational period for multiple births was about three weeks shorter than for singletons, and the preterm birth rate for those born before 37 weeks reached ten times that of singletons.
The report analyzed the causes of the increase in multiple births as the rising age of childbirth and advancements in assisted reproductive technology. While the rate of multiple pregnancies from natural conception is only about 1% to 2%, the rate from infertility treatments reaches 30% to 40%. As the number of infertility treatments and patients continues to rise domestically, multiple births are expected to keep increasing.
Researcher Bae Hye-won noted, "Multiple pregnancies pose risks to both the mother and fetuses, presenting many social challenges," and suggested that there is a need for data collection targeted at households with multiple births in Korea and the establishment of health and welfare services based on policy demands.
According to a statement from the Presidential Committee on Ageing Society and Population Policy, the number of infertility treatments nationwide increased annually from 87,000 in 2018 to about 140,000 in 2023.