Japan has one of the highest abortion rates in the world.
As a result, they have a rapidly greying population.
As a result, the wave of Japanese seniors frequently has no children to take care of them, or at least no children in their homes.
As a result, Japanese toy companies like Bandai have turned from making toys for tots to making toys for seniors, specifically: child-like dolls that seniors can interact with.
Excerpts:
Talking toys have become such a hit that some elderly people have embraced them as substitutes for the children who have grown old and deserted entire neighborhoods in the rapidly greying country.
The Yumel doll, which looks like a baby boy and has a vocabulary of 1,200 phrases, is billed as a "healing partner" for the elderly and goes on the market Thursday at a price of 8,500 yen (80 dollars).
Another toymaker, Bandai, in November 1999 launched the Primopuel doll which is meant to resemble a five-year-old boy who needs the same sort of attention, asking to be hugged and entertained.
(Cowboy hat tip to the reader who sent it!)
