Hot weather is associated with fewer babies being born in France and Italy, according to two new studies. Each day with an average temperature of 25°C or above was linked to about 360 fewer births in France and about 192 fewer in Italy.

The drop shows up nine to ten months after exposure to the hot weather. That timing points to fewer conceptions during warm months.

Hot weather can harm reproductive health in both men and women, which could mean fewer pregnancies. It may also change people’s sexual behaviour, and both explanations are possible.

France and Italy are not the first places where researchers have spotted this. Similar studies in the US, South Korea, Spain and across Europe have also found a link between hot weather and fewer births. As the evidence builds, it looks less like the quirk of a couple of countries.

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