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Risk Factors
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Age
If you are in your 30's or 40's, you will be considered to be an 'older' mother. This may mean that you are more prone to complications such as gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia and pregnancy induced hypertension so you will be monitored regularly.
Age is considered a 'risk factor' in pregnancy and you are considered to be an older mother if you are pregnant in your 30s and 40s as you will be more prone to certain complications of pregnancy such as:
pre-eclampsia
Pregnancy induced hypertension.
Unfortunately, many older women also have an increased risk of miscarrying and stillbirth, though this is minimal and many 'older' mothers continue through their pregnancy without any problems.
Pregnancy later on in life also carries an increased risk of certain chromosomal disorders such as Down's syndrome so many older women are offered the Nuchal translucency scan along with the alpha-fetoprotein blood test. Some women may also be offered an amniocentesis to determine if their child has a chromosomal abnormality. You do not have to have any of these tests, it's up to you if you want them or not.
To put things in perspective, before the age of 30 the risk of having a Down's syndrome baby is about one in 1,000, by the age of 40 this has increased to a one in 100 chance. Though this may seem very high, it still only means that if you had 100 children, one of them would have Down's!
On the positive side many older women are often more prepared for motherhood, both emotionally and financially. More and more women are waiting until at least their mid-thirties before starting a family and are happy that their increased financial security and self-confidence have made it worth the wait.
