Overpopulation: Population Growth and Birth Rate

Although most of us live a prosperous life with no worries, there are several issues that we are currently facing that will eventually be more and more clear as time goes on. One of these problems is most damaging, in my opinion, to our way of life if we do nothing about it. The issues I am speaking of is the problem of overpopulation. This is a developing crisis and it has plagued most of the world. An area is considered overpopulated if "its population can't be maintained without rapidly depleting nonrenewable resources and without destroying the environment which supports the population."(Brown,Gardner,Halweil, Beyond Malthus,19). The problems that arise due to overpopulation could lead to a fatal epidemic that could wipe out the whole human race. So the question remains: Are we facing overpopulation here in the Middle East? And how do we tackle such problems? The answer to this question is a short simple “Yes” but the solution to this problem is much longer than a one word answer. As such, overpopulation is existent here in the Middle East and countries should identify, analyze and control it immediately.

Although I do believe we are facing the crisis of over population, one might ask what exactly can be defined as overpopulation. Through common sense, overpopulation occurs when the number of people living in a certain region, who depend on resources for survival, is significantly bigger than the amount of resources available to them. This as a result, can lead to people living poorer and unhealthier lives compared to others. Currently the world is increasing by 80 million people per year (Stefoff 16). “Population is determined by the interplay of two factors. One is the birth rate, or the number of people being born, and the other is death rate, or the number who die. The difference between the two is called the rate of natural increase” (Stefoff 25). So let's say the birth rate is 5 children per second, and the death rate is 2 deaths per second. The