The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that the United States population reached 300 million this morning. (Check their population clock to see the current projection for this very minute; stay on the page for a bit and you can watch the numbers continue to increase.) You've probably been hearing about how this relates to immigration, the environment and the economy – but how does this affect reproductive health?

The anti-family-planning organization, Population Research Institute (PRI) has been issuing newsletters on the population projection for the past couple of months, contradicting most experts and focusing on positive spin about rapid population growth, urban sprawl, and Americans' energy use. PRI opposes contraception and funding for family planning; their idea of reproductive health fits in the Andrew Pollard category of anti-immigration doom & gloom about decreasing birthrates.

Now, don't get me wrong – urban sprawl and Americans' overuse of resources are cause for concern. The environment does affect families and attitudes about creating families, which affects reproductive health. But there are also explicit reproductive health aspects to population growth. On Friday, Andrea provided some excellent reasons to rethink "overpopulation," giving thoughtful examination to the effects of population growth and control. Another RH angle to consider is that women immigrants often don't have access to reproductive health services.

For more resources on the U.S. population growth: PlanetWIRE has a feature article on important U.S. indicators that relate to population growth. The Population Reference Bureau addresses how the U.S. has changed since it was a country of 200 million (helpful charts are included in this article). The U.S. Census Bureau shares fun facts that compare the U.S. at 300 million, with our country at 200 million and 100 million (such as the price of specific goods and demographics). Breathing Earth provides an interesting visual demonstration of global births and deaths (as well as CO2 emissions), allowing comparison between specific countries. For analysis on the environmental impact, check out the Center for Environment and Population's (CEP) newly released U.S. National Report on Population and the Environment.

Rewire will continue to cover population developments as they relate to reproductive health.