It was reported yesterday that Janet Jackson is pregnant with her first
child at the age of 49. But a new survey reveals that most women believe that
it's not right to have a baby after the age of 44, and that having older
parents is unfair on the child.
In the new survey for Private Pregnancy UK Show, three out of
four British women said that they thought it was 'unnatural' to have a baby past
the age of 44. Many of the women polled also thought that women over 50 should
not be offered fertility treatment.
When asked why, the most common reasons to not have a baby after the age
of 44 were:
- It's
unfair on the child to have old parents.
- There's
an increased likelihood of health complications, such as Down’s Syndrome,
for the child.
- Parents
won’t live long enough to see the child grow up.
- It's
“unnatural” to have babies after that age.
The women who took part in the survey also believe there needs to be more
education about not 'leaving it too late' to have a baby, and how to preserve
your fertility.
Dr Amin Gorgy, fertility consultant and IVF specialist at The Fertility
& Gynaecology Academy, commented on the findings, saying:
The ideal age for women to become pregnant is in their twenties and early
thirties. A woman’s fertility potential declines rapidly after the age of 35
and drops even faster after the age of 40.
He added:
In fact, I recommend that couples should aim to complete their families
by the age of 35. There isn’t enough education available to women, many of whom
still believe they can go on forever.
Annie Francis, chief executive at Neighbourhood Midwives, says that the
survey findings are 'judgemental' and said:
The great challenge is getting pregnant after 44 but, if you can, there
are many advantages to being an older parent, such as more life experience.
Sometimes women aren’t in the right circumstances to get pregnant. If they can
later, that’s something to be celebrated.
Source: NetMums
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