The Truth About Pregnancy over 40

Are you planning on conceiving a child after you blow the 40 candles of your life? Since becoming a mother after 40 has been gaining popularity nowadays.

According to the American Study, more than 100,000 mothers give birth in their 40s.

The study conducted by the Centre of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that this trend has been increasing since the 1970s, and the birth rate in the women aged between 40-44 has doubled since 1990-2012.

Let’s look at some facts about being pregnant after 40:

Pros of delaying pregnancy:

Delaying childbearing undoubtedly has its pros.

Experienced Parents:

First and foremost, you will be a well mature woman with an established career, financial independence.

You will have ample time to raise your child and provide a stable and pleasant atmosphere for your child’s proper nurturing.

These benefits are often not available with the mothers who give birth in their 20s or 30s, so maybe it’s not that bad to become a mother later in your life after all.

Strong Marital Bond:

You and your partner know each other well and have enjoyed your life to the fullest and would have even changed your relationship status if things didn’t work out between the two.

Also, you both would have traveled and seen the world and perhaps learned plenty of lessons from your mistakes which you can pass on to your kids.

Cons of delaying pregnancy:

Difficulty in the Conception:

As a woman ages over 40, it becomes difficult for her to get pregnant since the fertility rate of women gets reduced significantly after the age of 35.

By the time of 45, the chance of getting pregnant within a year with her eggs becomes highly impossible.

Studies have shown that the odds of getting pregnant by the age of 40 are hardly 40-50% as compared to the woman in the 30s who has a 75% chance of getting pregnant, and by the age of 43, it drops down to 1-2%.

However, to cater to these problems, several fertility treatments are available that assist in the process of conceiving a baby. As recommended by the fertility specialists, the older age eggs

in a woman tend to have more chromosomal problems resulting in a high risk of miscarriage and congenital disabilities.

The risk of miscarriage increases as well; by the age of 40, the rate of miscarriage is around 34%, and by the age of 45, it is about 53%.

Success rates of fertility treatments like in vitro fertilization fall significantly when a woman over 40 uses her eggs to conceive.

However, with the method of donor eggs, a woman aged over 40 can get the eggs from a woman in her 20s and 30s that will increase the rate of getting pregnant even when she is over 40.

High-Risk Pregnancy-Difficult Pregnancy:

Geriatric Pregnancy poses not only high risk for the mother but also the child.

Getting pregnant in your 40s is considered high risk by the doctors since it increases the risk of Gestational Diabetes, High Blood pressure- Preeclampsia, placenta previa, congenital disabilities like Down syndrome, miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, which can be due to in vitro fertilization (IVF).

The risk of pregnancy complications like gestational diabetes and high blood pressure in women start to increase by the age of 35 and continues to grow in your 40s.

For a woman aged 40 and more, the chances of delivering a baby through C-section increases as you age, and the possibility of a vaginal delivery decreases.

This is why it is important to get frequent checkups from the doctors who would be able to detect these complications and discuss your options. In cases of miscarriage or ectopic pregnancies, termination of the pregnancy may have to be discussed and carried out. Fortunately, there are many resources such as Abortion recovery help in Bloomsburg to help support those who are pregnant over 40.

Likelihood of Pre-term and small Baby increases:

Delivering after the age of 40 increases the risk of women giving pre-mature labor/ pre-term birth or low birth weight.

Also, the rate of stillbirth increases; chances of type 2 Diabetes and High blood pressure are also present.

Your partner’s sperm:

Although it is widely believed that a man is capable of becoming a father in the 60s and 70s, even lets not forget the partner is aging too.

Hence, his quality of sperm is also decreasing, which affects the fertility rate as well. Genetic defects like autism, Down syndrome, and schizophrenia are all related to the aged sperm of the man, as shown by the recent studies conducted.

Late parenting means having to work longer:

It might not apply to all, but becoming parents at an older age, you get to work late in your life to fulfill your liabilities.

And it gets more difficult if you have not been planning/saving for your retirement. To add a cherry on the top, if you have to go through the process of fertility treatments, then it will put a considerable dent in your pockets.

Furthermore, the child feels a little out of place or uncomfortable when they see their parents as old as compared to their class fellows whose parents are still young and don’t look like
grandparents.

The health problems increases as you age, which affects the quality of time you spend with your children as you may not be physical that active as you were in your 20s and 30s.

In many cultures, couples are often criticized for taking this much time and waiting to have children that increase the societal pressure on the husband and wife.

Becoming late parents also put increased pressure on you to produce a baby boy who can look after them in older age.

Such practices put undue influence on the couples, which further affects the fertility rate of the couple when planning after the age of 40.

So in conclusion, it is perfectly fine to plan your family after you cross 40, but don’t forget that the age affects the fertility rate.

Pregnancy is a risky time for a woman, and having health issues will not make you enjoy this time as you would have done in your early years.

Perhaps, at this age, you would want to complete your family soon to compensate for the time loss done earlier; hence, you might plan your kids fast with a little gap that will hinder your time for postpartum care which is very necessary for the mother to recover herself and enjoy motherhood.

We hope that you will benefit from the facts that we provided and will help you in making your decision wisely!!!

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Emma

A mother and lover of all things practical. My blog covers about motherhood by exploring all areas of life. Our tips and tricks help the large community to do more in less time so they can spend time enjoying happy, healthy families.