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From birth, we all begin to age. Men go through a parabolic pathway of strength; peaking in their twenties, and rapidly declining from their forties. In contrast, women’s aging bodies are a ticking bomb, a reminder that they are quickly losing their ability to get pregnant. So when exactly should women start thinking of getting pregnant?
Although men can reproduce for most of their lives starting from puberty, women have a particular period: from puberty till their fifties. Puberty usually starts at around 12 years old. However, more and more cases of puberty have been recorded from as early as 10 years. That means women can give birth from as early as 10 years old.
Women are born with as many eggs as they’ll ever have- a staggering 2 million. This number reduces over the years as they age. By 37, women have about 25000 eggs left, and at 51, just about a thousand are remaining. Yes, that’s still a lot of eggs, but the quality of eggs reduces with age. For this reason, your fifties isn’t the best age to have children. So when is?
According to experts and some mothers, there isn’t an actual age to get married. Not the answer you were expecting, is it? Their reason is that having a child involves many factors despite age, although age is probably the most important. The other factors include emotional and financial readiness. Let’s look at some of the pros and cons for the different age groups when considering getting pregnant.
BEFORE 20
In every Nigerian setting, a teenage mother is frowned upon. But that doesn’t deny the fact that your teenage years are the most fertile you’ll ever be because you still have a lot of eggs left. What’s more, teenage mothers are at a lower weight, so the risk of complications such as hypertension and gestational diabetes are quite unlikely.
However, at this age, women are hardly patient, willing, or knowledgeable enough to carry out the obligations of motherhood. Preeclampsia rates are highest at age extremes, which includes this age group, not to talk of the financial problems to face as they’re probably still in school.
20-24
In their early twenties, women are still viable for reproduction, with an estimated 25 percent chance each month. They still have all of the pros of the teenage years, but a few of their cons. For starters, some of them may still be struggling financially to pay their school fees and raise their child. And if they have a well-paying job but out of school, they may still face stress trying to couple their job with the weight of carrying an extra human all day long.
25-29
Medically, women in this age group have the same pros and cons as the last one. Some women believe that in your mid-twenties, due to societal pressure, you may feel like having another baby after having your first. Why not? You’re still young, full of energy.
30-34
When you hit your thirties, your fertility drops, but not to a dangerous level. You still have a good chance of getting pregnant each month. But there’s a drawback. If you planned on having more children, and you eventually had your first in this age bracket, then you may have to settle for less.
However, in their thirties, women are usually financially ready to have children, especially if they’d been building their careers in their twenties. In that time, they get to explore many opportunities in their careers and know themselves better.
35-39
We already know that women’s fertility and the quality of their eggs begin to decline as they grow old, substantially at 32 and rapidly at 37. In this age bracket, the chance of successful fertility assistance like the IVF is quite low, and women become more susceptible to various health risks such as diabetes in pregnancy, preeclampsia, hypertension, and chromosomal abnormalities. The only giveaway for this group is the financial stability and emotional capacity to duly carry out activities of motherhood.
40-45
By 40, women’s chances of conceiving is pretty low at about 5 percent. But that’s not all, the medical risks involved can’t be overlooked. Women older than 40 suffer high risk to pregnancy complications such as miscarriages, preeclampsia, placenta previa, low birth weight, preterm labor, as well as a high rate of fetal demise. And if the woman already has underlying conditions, then the risks climb higher.
Overall, experts and mothers agree that there is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question of when the best age to get pregnant is. Biologically, the answer is most likely in your early twenties, but there are a slew of other factors to consider, many of which vary from person to person.
But in my opinion, your late twenties till your early thirties, that’s 26-34, is the best time to get pregnant. Whatever you do, make sure it feels right to you at the time.
