How old is too old to have a baby?

Since my return to Jamaica, the oldest mother I have delivered was in her mid-40s. She gave birth to a beautiful, healthy baby, and both mother and baby did well. I had a conversation with someone during my pregnancy, who mentioned that women should not have children after 35.

Apart from being flattered that this individual thought that I was younger than that age, it also occurred to me that if I or many of my patients abode by that rule, we would never have the experience of the joys of motherhood. In fact, I owe my very existence to someone who did not stick to that rule. My grandmother gave birth to my mother and her twin sister when she was 41 years old.

Nowadays, because of medical advances, a woman was even able to give birth at age 70. She was able to have a baby using in vitro fertilisation with the eggs of a younger woman. Advanced maternal age (AMA) describes pregnant women who will be age 35 or older at their due date.

70-year-old mother

Children born to mothers of AMA have an increased risk of abnormalities. Other risks include an increased likelihood of miscarriage, gestation diabetes, hypertension in pregnancy, placenta problems, pre-term delivery and stillbirth and Cesarean sections.

But how old is too old? Many would question, for example, why a 70 year-old woman would want to be a new mother. However, is that concept as foreign as we may initially think? For example, many a grandmother of that age or older have been taking care of their grandchildren. New motherhood is extremely demanding and, based on my experience and others, sleep deprivation is the norm for the first few weeks and even months of the new baby's life. However, I am also aware that it is entirely possible for a new mother of any age to hire or enlist the help of someone who will take care of the baby at nights, allowing the mother to get well-needed rest.

Life expectancy

Another potential concern is that the mother could die when the child is still at a young age. Life expectancy is about 75 years for Jamaican women. However, many women are living to be centenarians and some enjoy relatively good health even at that age.

While I am by no means advocating any woman having a child in her 70s I must admit that if a woman in her late 30s or early 40s desires to have a child, while I counsel her of the risks, I will not discourage her. Many women of that age have safe pregnancies and healthy children. Thank you grandma for taking the risk.

Dr Monique Rainford is a consulting obstetrician and gynaecologist; email: yourhealth@gleanerjm.com.