 In a world in which women are trying to
find a relationship after 30 and many already believe that
forties are the new
thirties, it should come as no surprise that many women have no choice but to take a shot at being pregnant after they have crossed 40. However, fertility drops rapidly with age and the risk of malformations, especially Down’s Syndrome, in the fetus is higher among older moms. Knowing this, is it wrong to want a baby at this age? Are you being irresponsible if you are considering pregnancy at such a late stage in your life?
(Related:
Mommy Makeover)
These are questions that trouble many women who either because of their careers or due to the way in which their relationships worked out, could not have children in their 20s and 30s.
While detailed data is difficult to get, it is estimated
that approximately 100,000 babies are born each year to
mothers between the ages of 40 to 44 and about 7,000 to
women 45 and older in the United States. The main reason
for such low number (though it is rapidly growing) is that
advanced maternal age raises the risk of birth defects,
multiple births, premature birth and health problems later
in life. But it is important to remember that many younger mothers have fertility problems, and many older mothers do have perfectly healthy babies.
Among the celebrities that have had healthy babies around
40 are Courtney Cox, Brooke Shields, Susan Sarandon,
Geena Davis, Julianne Moore, Holly Hunter, and
Adrienne Barbeau.
However, Rachel Hunter and Halle Berry have said that if
they do not get
pregnant by 40, they
wouldn't go beyond that, though Halle did get pregnant
eventually at 41. Marcia Cross got pregnant
at 44. (Related:
How to raise twins?)
So what is a 40-year old woman gotta do?
The very first thing you need to do is to discuss this issue with your physician and undergo all the tests that may be needed. If you are in good physical condition, the doctor might advise you to hurry up. If that does not work, the doctor might then suggest
fertility
treatment. (Related:
Infertility Cure book review)
And how do you get pregnant?
Well, there is no rocket science to it but the key is to
make love during your most fertile days. The window of opportunity to get pregnant is very short, and therefore, while it sounds funny, the more time you spend in
the bedroom with your
man, the better it is (Related:
How to make a baby).
We have a lot of tips on seduction and
spicing up your marriage to make sure he can rise to the challenge.
What else can you do to make sure your pregnancy happens?
- Keep your stress away since that can reduce a woman's fertility. So a little pampering will help.
Massages,
spa
trips, facials,
romantic
getaways, and positive attitude will definitely help.
- Pop a pill of folic acid. It also does not hurt to take
supplements and vitamins.
(Related:
Fertility Diet book review)
- It is also to be noted that it is not
just women who need to worry about getting too old to be
pregnant. Men too have their biological clocks and not
only relationship with an older man less likely to
result in a pregnancy, complications during pregnancy
and birth defects are more likely. For instance, one
study found that men over 40 are six times more likely
to father a child with autism than their younger peers.
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