Info Centre - Age and pregnancy

Does age matter when considering having a baby?

Your age can have an effect on starting a pregnancy, on the pregnancy and birth and on how you experience becoming a parent.

There are some increased health risks, which may affect either mother or baby, associated with very young mothers and older mothers but most people have a very positive experience. The UK is one of the safest in places in the world for a woman when she is having a baby.

How others view you can be affected by your age. Very young or much older mothers may feel stigmatised as somebody who has made an unusual choice.

Having a baby when your peer group are not generally having babies can make you feel isolated. The older you are when you have your baby the less likely you are to have your own parents around. The younger you are the less likely you are to have completed your education and be in a financially secure position.

Age and becoming pregnant

Women are most fertile at the beginning of their reproductive years in their late teens and twenties. On average, women’s fertility falls after the age of 30 and even more sharply after 35. Men also experience reduced fertility with older age.

Now it is possible to assisted fertility strategies such as ovulation induction or in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) which help mainly older women.

Age and your pregnancy

If you are fit and well, your own age should make little difference to your experience, though older mothers may feel more tired. Women react differently to pregnancy, but keeping rested and relaxed, and attuned to changes in your body during pregnancy, is the best approach to good health and well-being for mother and baby.

If you have an underlying condition such as diabetes or high blood pressure there is more risk for you or your baby. Older women are more likely to have such a condition and it is this that makes some pregnancies in older women potentially more risky. However most of these problems can be monitored and usually effectively managed so that there is no associated poor outcome.

At any age it is important to be aware of headaches, vision problems and swollen feet and hands, as these can be signs of raised blood pressure and need to be checked straight away. Feeling very itchy over your whole body is a sign of liver problems and needs to be checked by a doctor. Pain in your legs and chest and feeling breathless should also be checked by a doctor. The risk of miscarriage also increases with age.

Age and your baby

The older you are when you conceive, the greater the risk that your baby has a genetic anomaly, which may lead to miscarriage or to the birth of a baby with a syndrome such as Downs.

Research indicates that, in mothers of 40 or over, the proportion of babies born prematurely or with a low birth weight is greater. There are many choices available in antenatal screening and diagnosis for potential problems with the baby’s health and development.

In the difficult circumstances of an abnormality being diagnosed, expectant parents may be offered the choice of a termination of pregnancy. Making this decision on whether to continue with the pregnancy or not and coping with the consequences can be especially hard for a couple who have delayed their family as they may find it harder to have a successful subsequent pregnancy.

Age and your baby’s birth

Women who have medical problems at any age may have more difficulty in having a straightforward birth.

However, generally, there is no reason why labour and birth should be more complicated for healthy older mothers, although statistically it is more likely for their babies to be born by caesarean section.

Age and motherhood

The impact of looking after a new baby is challenging for everyone.

Older mothers are often better off financially but for some women who have previously been able to have substantial control over their work and social life, it can be difficult to learn to go with the flow of a newborn’s demands, when this means disruption of an established life.

If you are not in a home of your own or struggling financially, which is more common in very young mothers, this can add considerable stress to motherhood.

Mothers who have had children at a range of ages often say they had more energy but less patience as young mothers.

Motherhood is tougher when you are not well supported by friends and family and where you don’t know anyone else with a young baby. The NCT can help you find people who live near you who have babies around the same age as your own.

Age and fatherhood

Men do not experience the same physiological barriers to parenthood as there are for women; indeed, men have fathered healthy children up to the age of 90 and beyond. There is evidence associating slightly increased occurrences of abnormal conditions in the baby to the father’s age but the risk is small.

Fathers often especially enjoy parenthood when they are older, especially if they are less immediately concerned about financial support for mother and baby. They may be more able to take time off work to be there in the early days.

Young fathers often find they are excluded from involvement with their child and this can be very distressing. They may have to work longer hours to support their family. On the other hand, younger dads may have more energy for their children.

It may sometimes be harder than average to find a local network of parents who share the same outlook if you are very young or much older . Young parents may find they can more easily get support and helpful childcare from their own parents, especially if their parents live locally and are fit and well.

Joining NCT antenatal classes or bumps and babies groups can put you in touch with others, who will continue to remain good contacts after the birth.