Is it OK to Have Children After the Age of 35?

When wondering, “Is it OK to have children after the age of 35?”, it’s reassuring to know that the majority of women who give birth after this age will have uncomplicated pregnancies and deliver healthy children. Although there is an increased risk of certain difficulties associated with giving birth after 35, the scientific evidence suggests that many women can still have successful pregnancies.

It is a fact that women who are pregnant and over the age of 35 are classified as having an “age of maturity” for the mother. However, contrary to the widespread belief, they can still have normal pregnancies and deliver healthy kids.

According to Juli Fraga, Psy.D., a psychologist based in San Francisco who specializes in reproductive health, “It’s natural to have doubts about conceiving at a later age, but healthy women of childbearing age (35 and over) can do so without any problems.” Despite this, “it’s normal to be concerned about later age pregnancy.” “There are numerous options to assist families to have children, including IVF, donor eggs, or surrogacy,” she continues. “Even with fertility challenges, there are many ways to help families have children.”

This goes against the traditional cultural narrative, which states that women above the age of 35 should not bear children, although this is not true in most cases. “Pre-pregnancy anxiety over losing fertility is more a worry than a reality,” reassures Dr. Fraga. “This anxiety is tied to the fact that one is trying to become pregnant.” Pregnancies that occur after a woman has passed her prime reproductive years are associated with a higher risk of difficulties, such as preeclampsia and miscarriage; nevertheless, modern medicine can assist patients in overcoming various challenges.

The following is what the scientific community has to say about having children after the age of 35.

After The Age Of 35, It Is Not Unusual To Have Children

Parents are delaying parenthood until they are older, and this trend is anticipated to last for the foreseeable future. According to one survey, those over the age of 35 represent the age range where the rate of people becoming parents is increasing the fastest.

Since the 1990s, the average age of a mother at the time of giving birth has gone up, according to the Pew Research Center. According to the think tank, “the median age at which women become mothers in the United States is 26, up from 23 in 1994.” This is an increase from the previous age of “23.” This percentage of women who had become moms before the age of 24 decreased from 53% in 1994 to 39% in 2014 among women in their early 40s.

It Is Safe To Have Babies After the Age of 35

Women of “advanced maternal age” who become pregnant often worry a lot about their personal safety. And while it is true that conceiving after the age of 35 is associated with an increased risk of difficulties, such as preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, chromosomal abnormalities, and even miscarriage or stillbirth, many people nevertheless go on to have healthy infants after conceiving later in life.

You can take steps to increase your chances of having a healthy pregnancy. According to the Cleveland Clinic, this includes keeping a regular exercise regimen, eating a diet rich in nutrients, not smoking, effectively managing existing medical conditions, and participating in the suggested screenings and diagnostic tests. Your healthcare provider will watch you more closely than usual if they determine that you are carrying a high-risk baby.

In addition, I have some more excellent news to share with you: Pregnant women who had recently turned 35 had better overall prenatal care and pregnancy outcomes than those who had just turned 18 or younger, according to a study published in the JAMA Health Forum in December 2021. This could be due, at least in part, to the fact that older patients get increased levels of care and attention during their pregnancies as a result of their advanced maternal ages.

Elderly Parents May Live Longer

The New England Centenarian Study found that women who gave birth after 40 were four times as likely to live to 100 than those who had children earlier. They reference research published in the journal Nature, which claims that “Having children by the fifth decade may indicate slow aging and a later capacity for extraordinary lifespan.” The old adage that having children helps you stay young may be true.

There’s also a possibility that happiness plays a part. In a report that was distributed by Sage Journals, researchers analyzed the data from three separate studies and came to the conclusion that having children brings joy to a parent’s life. The study’s findings indicate that “Parents, particularly fathers, report much better levels of happiness, positive emotion, and significance in their lives than people who do not have children.

It’s Possible That Having Children After the Age of 35 Will Make You Smarter

The human body goes through a lot of changes during pregnancy, and it’s tempting to imagine that the only permanent impacts may be things like stretch marks or weight gain. However, these changes are just the beginning. However, it has been found that the hormone component can have unexpected effects on later stages of life.

According to the findings of a study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, people who have given birth to children may derive health benefits from the hormones that flood the body and brain during pregnancy. Specifically, a “positive association” was found between “last pregnancy after age 35 and verbal memory” later in life.

Parents having children after the age 35 used to be unheard of, but times have changed. Nowadays, it’s not uncommon at all. No of the age of the parents, they have every reason to believe that they can have healthy children if they receive the appropriate support and medical treatment.

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