Women Waiting Too Late To Have Babies
What Does “Too Late” Mean?
Over the last twenty years pregnancies in women over the age of thirty five have increased rapidly. The average age of mothers has gone up.
The “best” medical age for pregnancy remains between twenty and thirty five.
Since 1985 the average age for a mother to have her first baby has gone from twenty six to twenty nine.
Age related fertility problems increase after thirty five and again after forty.
Why Has This Shift Happened?
- Inability to find a suitable partner
- Increasing emphasis on building a career
- Increasing desire for a comfortable standard of living
- Increasing availability of fertility treatments
Why Is It A Problem?
IVF does not guarantee a pregnancy. Additionally it can have a high financial investment and there is extra risk of multiple pregnancy when it does succeed.
Men waiting longer to father children are also risking a deteriorating sperm count.
Older mothers are more susceptible to miscarriage, foetal and chromosome abnormalities and pre-eclampsia.
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