Spouses who had planned to have children this year might just have to jam the brakes on that project in light of the global economic recession which has resulted in redundancies and ballooning food and mortgage costs.

Sanecia Walters is 28 and feels it's time to has a child. In fact, she and her partner had agreed last year that 2009 was the year for them to have their little bundle of joy.

But Walters told Saturday Life that the couple has put those plans on hold.

"You cannot make a decision like that when the economic crisis is before us," Walters said.

"Children are blessings but (the jobs of) too many employees are being made redundant and I am afraid that if I lose my job I would not be able to care for my child," she said.

A similar situation exists for 30-year-old social scientist Charlene Seymour. She feels that her biological clock is ticking but decided to do everything in her power to ensure that she doesn't get pregnant.

"Pregnancy is a no-no for me right now because things are stiff. I am in an OK job but I don't know what will happen farther down the road, given the unstable economy that we have now," Seymour explained.

Drop in birth rate

According to an article recently in The New York Times, there was a dip in the birth rate during the Great Depression and the Energy Crisis of 1976.

However, 25-year-old Taneisha Turner said she would have a child this year, if she were ready. She notes that there are so many persons who are worse off than she is but are able to manage with several children.

"I think it would be worth the risk if we want an addition to our family," she told Saturday Life.

petrina.francis@gleanerjm.com