Women who give birth over the age of 50 are physically and mentally just as "capable" as younger women of being good mothers.
A team of US scientists at the University of Southern California (USC) found the older women did not have higher stress levels or health risks than younger mothers. The research will be presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicines. However, another expert said the study did not address the effect on children as their mothers grew older. The scientists looked at 150 mothers in their 30s, 40s and 50s who had fertility treatment between 1992 and 2004. All the women studied had conceived through USC's donated eggs programme.
The researchers said: "If we look from the perspective of stress and physical and mental functioning, it doesn't seem like we can restrict parenting. Overall we found that the women in their 50s did not have reduced parental capacity or higher stress levels than the younger women."
Dr Anne Steiner, who carried out the research, said the study suggested opposition to older mothers may be based on prejudice rather than evidence they were poor parents.
She said: "The conclusion from this study, though it is limited and of small size, is that if we look from the perspective of stress and physical and mental functioning, it doesn't seem like we can restrict parenting based on these reasons."
But she added that many of the women in the study had younger partners, which could influence their ability to cope. They said the findings dispel the myth that older women should be barred from having IVF on account of their age.
Bill Ledger, professor of obstetrics at the University of Sheffield, told the Independent: "The problem I have is not what happens to mothers at 50 to 55. What worries me is what happens when their children are 18 and they are in their 70s and 80s. I am not in favour of banning things, but I am concerned for the welfare of a child whose parents are as old as its peers' grandparents."
In July, a 62-year-old child psychiatrist become the oldest woman in Britain to have a baby. Dr Patricia Rashbrook of Lewes, East Sussex, and her husband John Farrant, 60, travelled abroad to get IVF treatment. Adriana Iliescu from Romania is thought to be the oldest woman in the world to give birth. She had a daughter called Eliza Maria in January 2005 at the age of 66.
If you're an older mum and are fed up of snide comments.....here are a few Snappy Comebacks
 Why would you want another baby at your age?
For the same reasons that someone would want a baby at any age.
I can't believe you're pregnant
Would you like to see the pregnancy test? I kept it as proof.
I can't believe you're pregnant and at your age!
I can't believe you're so rude / insolent etc. etc. (Choose your own insult here).
Was it a mistake?
1 No. Why, were you?
2 When you enjoy sex as often as we do, you're bound to have a slip up some time aren't you?
Are you going to keep it?
1 Well, we thought we'd wait and see whether we liked it first when it's born.
2 We might take it back to the shop if it's not suitable.
You're pregnant!
Thank goodness for that! I wondered why I was gaining so much weight.
Rather you than me!
1 And rather me than you!
2 It is I rather than you isn't it?
Aren't you too old to have another baby?
1 Evidently not. Here's the proof (rub your expanding girth).
2 Aren't you too old to be so tactless / rude?
You're not having another baby?
Am I not? Damn! There must be another reason for this weight gain then.
Are your ankles supposed to look like that?
Is your nose supposed to look like that?
Isn't it hard having a baby at your age?
1 Not as hard as it is being middle-aged and childless.
2 I always thought it was hard having a baby at any age all that pushing and panting.
Aren't you worried about the baby having (chromosomal) abnormalities?
So are you saying that a handicapped child is less valid as a person than one without any handicap?
You've put on loads of weight haven't you?
And so have you, but at least I'll lose mine when the baby is born.
You're huge!
1 Yes, it's called pregnancy.
2 And you're huge too, but I wasn't going to mention it.
3 At least it's a baby and not fat.
Haven't you had your baby yet?
Yes, but I thought I'd stuff her up my jumper because I enjoyed being pregnant so much.
I couldn't cope with all those sleepless nights.
Well, you won't have to will you?
There are, of course, many more questions, comments and remarks and just as many snappy comebacks. Keeping your cool is important for you and your baby and if you cannot think of any other reply, just remind other people that you are the one who is carrying this very much wanted baby and that you are the one who will be coping with the situation, so they should concern themselves with their own lives and not yours.
Read more about OLDER MUMS here.
October 2006 |
Abortion Time Limit Cut?
