There has been a 20% drop in the number of births recorded in Clare in the space of a year.
The latest figures from the Central Statistics Office show Clare recorded he 8th lowest total of births nationwide between July and September of 2022.
Just 290 births were recorded in Clare in the third quarter of 2022, a decrease of 74 from the same juncture of the year previous.
The median age of mothers in Clare who gave birth to their first born in the third quarter of last year was 31, while just two births were recorded in this timeframe to first-time mothers aged 20 and under.
56% of newborns recorded during this quarter were baby boys, accounting for 165 of the total, while the remaining 125 baby girls comprised the other 44% of births.
During the same period of July to September last, 227 deaths were registered in the Banner county , 116 of these were male, with the remaining 111 female.
This means despite the relatively low birth rate recorded here during the third quarter of 2022 , Clare registered a natural increase of 21% .
