Women are waiting longer and longer to get pregnant. Building careers and enjoying them is certainly a large part of that. Other reasons to wait until after 35, or 40, to start having kids are financial concerns, not having met the right partner, or simply not wanting children before a certain point in their lives. But British doctors are warning that 35-year old women are six times more likely to have fertility problems than their 25-year old counterparts. Additionally, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (which is the UK equivalent of the US ACOG, or American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) warns that some women have come to see fertility treatment options as a "safety net". They think that, if they are unable to get pregnant naturally, they will always be able to undergo IVF to have a baby. But the British gynecologists point out that women who get pregnant at 40 are more likely to have a miscarriage than give birth, and fertility treatments for those who are over 44 have a success rate as low as three percent!
Why are UK infertility statistics rising? Infertility and gynecology consultant Gedis Grudzinskas gave his views: "Many women I see say they find it very difficult to try to do everything. Society has changed and there is now much more opportunity to follow exciting careers, especially with such inadequate provision of child care. Women achieve career satisfaction and decide they want to start a family but by this time it is too late and they can t turn the clock back. We should be making it easier for women to start a family while they are at work." Well, I certainly could not disagree with that! But just how many companies are truly family friendly? Do work and young kids really mix? We are not all in a position to bring our newborns to work with us, like that Italian Member of the European Parliament did recently. And... she only did it to make a one-off point that it is indeed possible to have it all. Unfortunately, I don't see the trend of waiting until our late thirties and beyond to have kids changing any time soon. How about you?
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