The economic crisis has caused fertility to fall in most developed countries. France seems to escape the fall but, without the crisis, the fertility indicator, which has been increasing in recent years, would have continued to increase and would exceed two children per woman. Trends in child mortality are also difficult to interpret as a result of changes in civil registration. One solution would be to add to the birth certificate the weight of the child and the duration of pregnancy in order to be able to judge the viability of each birth in the light of the international criteria set by the WHO.