A Japanese study has revealed that a large number of the country’s young population are still virgins, sparking a scare over low birth rates.

According to the Japan Times, a new survey of
Japanese people ages 18 to 34 found that 70 percent of unmarried men and 60 percent of unmarried women are not in a relationship. It gets worse: Around 42 percent of men and 44.2 percent of women admitted that they were virgins.

The study is carried out by Japan' s National Institute of Population and Social Security Research every five years. The organisation has noted a marked trend since its first foray on questions of relationships and sex in 1987, when it found that 48.6 percent of men
and 39.5 percent of women surveyed were unmarried.

In 2010, 36.2 percent of men and 38.7 percent of women in the 18 - 34 age bracket said they were virgins. The number of children among couples who have been married for between 15 and 19 years averaged a record low this year.

The Japanese government under Prime Minister
Shinzo Abe has said it wants to raise the nation's fertility rate from 1.4 to 1.8 by 2025 . It' s offering better child - care services and tax incentives for married couples, though such programs have yet to bear statistical fruit.

Most people surveyed said they want to get married at some point . It's just not clear when. "They want to tie the knot eventually . But they tend to put it off as they have gaps between their ideals and the reality, " Futoshi Ishii, head researcher for the study, told Japan Times. "That’s why people marry later or stay single for life, contributing to the nation’ s low birthrate."

Is it that problem?

Mrjo:
Is it that problem?

To them, Yes