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Reacting to the rapid spread of the Zika virus in Latin America and the Caribbean, health officials in El Salvador are urging women not to get pregnant until 2018 in an effort to halt a surge of birth defects that are suspected to stem from the mosquito-borne disease.
The entire region has erupted with concern over the virus, and each country has taken measures to combat its spread. Other Latin American countries, such as Colombia and Ecuador, as well as Jamaica in the Caribbean, have recommended delaying pregnancies, though not for an entire two years.
The rest of Latin America has responded with different tactics, ranging from widespread fumigation efforts to directing citizens not to be bitten by the Aedes mosquito, which is known to carry yellow, chikungunya and dengue fevers.
El Salvador appears to have taken the most dramatic step so far, though the recommendation this week is not official policy. In a region that is largely Roman Catholic, the request has raised concern from the church, and many Salvadorans question the rationale for upending the national birthrate in order to counter the suspected effects of a virus.
Civil groups have also questioned the practicality of the recommendation, noting that in El Salvador pregnancies are often unplanned. Others say it is a testament to the lack of a coherent strategy from the government, and point to the difficulty of combating something as prevalent and evasive as the mosquito.
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