Hospitals across Germany are currently experiencing very busy periods, about nine months after Christmas. Medics and sociologists have noticed a spike around September 24th, noting that this date closely aligns with the Christmas period. According to Bertram Häussler, a medical doctor and sociologist, many people take time off during the holidays, spend more time together, and tend to stay physically closer indoors during the cold season.
According to the Federal Statistical Office, between 2020 and 2025, no single day saw as many births as September 24th. Häussler describes this as a small, recurring “Christmas effect.” While this spike occurs, the most fertile month is now August. He explains that many of these babies are conceived in November because that time of year is cold and dark, leading people to spend more time together at home.
This trend is a recent development. Until approximately 1970, the peak month for births was in March and April. Häussler attributes the shift from spring to late summer and autumn to factors such as the introduction of the birth control pill and the increasing age at which people start families. He notes that if someone has their first child around age 30 instead of in their early twenties, they are more likely to have their own apartment, reducing their dependency on warm summer evenings for couple time. This shift began in West Germany in the 1970s, arriving about two decades later in the East.
Häussler, along with birth medicine specialist Joachim Dudenhausen, conducted research examining births in both East and West Germany from 1950 to 2022, during which they analyzed, among other things, how the most prolific birth months have changed over several decades.
