Getting Pregnant After the Age of 35

Getting pregnant after 35 is more common than ever. Between 1980 and 2004, the percentage of women 30 and older having their first baby more than tripled, from 8.6 to 25.4 percent, while the percentage of those aged 35 or older having their first baby jumped sixfold. And while few women had their first babies after age 40 in 1980, by 2006 they accounted for 2.2 percent of all first babies born in the United States. Though having a baby at any age is exciting, getting pregnant later in life comes with some challenges, from getting pregnant and staying pregnant to labor and delivery. The key is to do everything possible to reduce your risk of problems. Specifically: