A pregnancy after 40 has increased risk for both the mother and the baby. In fact, getting pregnant after the age of 35 does carry the increased chances of developing complications during the pregnancy and during the delivery. Being in good health before you become pregnant and obtaining prenatal care as early as possible is essential. It is very common for babies born to mothers in this age group to have genetic disorders. This is because as you age, so your eggs and they are more likely to have chromosomal deficiencies as you advance in years. You may not look or feel forty years of age, but your body's organs do start to lose their youthfulness, whether you want them to or not.



Although there is a risk of miscarriage for all women in the first trimester, this risk is doubled or tripled for women over the age of forty. They also have a greater chance of experiencing stillbirth. The baby may be born with medical problems that will cause it die in infancy and this causes even more trauma to the mother. Even if they haven's been taking fertility drugs, it is quite common for older women to give birth to multiple babies. Experts report that women who become pregnant in their forties are more likely to have more than one baby than women who become pregnant in their twenties.

While there are many medical conditions related to pregnancy, these are more common in older pregnant women. Gestational diabetes and high blood pressure are just two of these. Some of the common complications that doctors are always checking for when they have a patient who is pregnant and over forty include:

- Placenta Previa ?This is a condition where the placenta is very low-lying and covers the cervix. One of the symptoms of this complication is bleeding. If the placenta becomes detached, there could be severe bleeding and would result in a Caesarean section in order to deliver the baby.

- Placental abruptions ?This is a complication that results when the placenta detaches itself from the lining of the womb. In some cases the bleeding may be so severe that the mother requires a blood transfusion

- Pre-term delivery. Many mothers in this age group have premature babies

- Intrauterine growth retardation ?This is the term given to a baby that is very small at birth even though the pregnancy may be full term. As they get older, women can have complications that do not permit the baby to develop as it should in the womb.

A woman with a history of high blood pressure or diabetes before she gets pregnant is at increased risk when she does get pregnant. This is more pronounced in women over the age of forty and they may find it very difficult to manage their medical conditions during the pregnancy, resulting in lengthy hospital stays or bed rest at home. Older women are more likely to deliver their babies by Caesarean section, rather than a vaginal delivery, than younger women as well.