According to experts, the ideal years for having a baby are between the ages of 20 to 35. After age 40, many changes are taking place in a woman's body that make it risky for her to bear a child after 40.
Risks of childbearing after 40
First, it should be stated that childbearing has its risks at any age. But after age 40, there are additional risks to consider.
Miscarriage: The chance of having a miscarriage increases after age 40. According to physicians at the March of Dimes and the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists, miscarriage risks by age are:
- At age 20: 1 in 10 women
- At age 35: 1 in 5 women
- At age 40: 1 in 3 women
- At age 45: 1 in 2 women
Chromosomal abnormalities: This includes Downs Syndrome and other abnormalities that have a high mortality rate for babies. The risks by age are:
- At age 20: 1 in 526 births
- At age 30: 1 in 385 births
- At age 40: 1 in 66 births
- At age 45: 1 in 21 births
Other risks
Another common problem is the difficulty of getting pregnant after 40, which drops to just 10-15 percent by age 35. This is explained by Dr. Melinda Miller-Thrasher, OB GYN of Innovative Women’s HealthCare Solutions, as being caused by the lack of young and healthy eggs as a woman grows older. She states, "those eggs left as we age are less likely to result in successful pregnancies and more likely to result in miscarriages.”
Read more at www.blackdoctor.org/460924/pregnancy-after-40-risks/
