What are the chances of a woman getting pregnant after 35? One of the very concerns women have is age.
For a woman who still wants to give birth, age is not just a number. It is a figure that she should look at not with anxiety, but with a plan. Getting pregnant before 35 should be her target.
Indeed, from age 35 and above, women who still want to give birth are in the range of “advanced maternal age” and have more odds.
While men also experience a decline in their sperm health as they age, the speed of decline is nothing to compare with that of women (1).
It feels like women are shortchanged in this regard, but God made conception for a woman early and there is a reason for that.
While the fertility age of men begins to decline gradually between 40 and 45 that of women begins at 30.
This decline is steady and that continues until she gets to menopause.
Not only is getting pregnant after 35 possible, a woman can give birth to healthy children after 35.
However, while this is possible, the chance of getting pregnant from this age to 40 declines to just 5% per cycle.
Also, at this age, women are prone to miscarriages and other risks like diabetes or hypertension.
According to experts, a typical 40-year-old has about a 40% chance of losing the pregnancy. That compares to less than 15% for someone in their 20s.
Why Is Getting Pregnant After 35 Difficult
The truth is that as a woman ages her eggs also age.
At birth, a baby girl has about 1 million eggs.
At puberty, a woman has between 300,000 to 400,000 eggs left and at age 37 she is down to about 25,000.
Unfortunately, the fewer eggs a woman has in her ovaries the lower the chances of conception.
Also Read: How Can I Prepare My Body For Pregnancy?
According to studies, older eggs are more likely to have abnormal chromosomes (2). This circumstance raises your chance of miscarrying your baby.
Also, women after 35 are more likely to have problems like endometriosis and uterine fibroids that make it harder for you to get pregnant.
On the fit side of hope, as long as a woman continues to ovulate, there is the potential for conception each month but the chance of this decline substantially with age.
While this is possible, a study says there is also increase in the chances of miscarriage of early pregnancies (3). This was also attributed to the decline in egg quality.
As a result, it is important that a you target to give birth before 35 or maximum of 40 years.
If You Get Pregnant At Advanced Maternal Age…
However, if you are in your 40s, the most important thing to ensure is that you ovulate. After that, ensure that live a healthy lifestyle. These may help ensure that your eggs are healthier.
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Exercising and adding super foods that boost fertility to diet have helped women increase chances of conception.
Also, being sure of the right diet to take when you are pregnant after 35 years is also important.
According to a study, high food quality, together with adequate macro- and micronutrient intake in pregnancy, is crucial for the health status of the mother and child (4).
Here, the diet quality and quantity is essential.
In countries with advanced technology, a woman can freeze her eggs in her 20s. She can use them for IVF when she is ready for babies.
However, in Nigeria, we have little of such technology and the best a woman can do is to maintain a healthy life and then begin early.
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