Iranian Population Policy and Aging: New Health Concerns

Abstract

Iran’s population policy underwent a bizarre fluctuation in recent decades. During the Iran–Iraq war (1979–1987), the total fertility rate was about 6.53%. Following this period and owing to economic problems, the government reversed the population policy in 1988. A new population plan was officially proposed to reduce the rate of population growth.1 In the 2011 census, the birth rate was reported to have declined to 1.29%.2 Moreover, according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO), the life expectancy in Iran increased dramatically from 54.67 years in 1980 to 75.5 years in 2015. Both these factors increased the rate of population aging (or the double-aging process). The migration of young adults to other countries has also accelerated this phenomenon