Age and Infertility


Contrary to popular belief: not only women’s age is directly related to fertility but both men and women’s fertility is affected as they age. At age of 18-24, women are at their peak of fertility. The optimum age for women to get pregnant is naturally between 20-25. After the age of 26, women’s fertility starts to gradually decrease and by the age of 40 it is increasingly difficult for women to conceive naturally. Male fertility is less affected by age; however infertility still rises in men as they get older.

 

Age and female fertility

Women are born with a finite number of eggs. Ovulation occurs every month during the woman's menstrual cycle and as a result, the number of eggs women produce decrease with age. Women continue to release eggs every month until the menopause, however, as women age; the body responds less to hormones that mature ova prior to ovulation. Hence, the quality of the eggs begins to decline from the age of 25. The outer shell of ova hardens over time. A harder exterior makes the process of sperm fertilizing the egg more difficult. The risk of children being born with genetic disorders increases drastically in women over 40. Women over 35 are at high risk of miscarriage and problems during pregnancy.

 

Age and male fertility

Unlike women who do not continually produce eggs, men produce sperm all of their lives. Technically, there is no age limit for men fathering children but the quality of sperm decreases with age. Sperm produced by males over the age of 55 has lower motility making it harder for sperm to fertilize eggs and sperm from older men is more likely to be affected by genetic disorders. The decrease in sperm quality with age is a result of the testes shrinking as men age. Age limitations to fertility treatment The age limit in fertility treatment varies between countries and clinics. Most fertility clinics will not provide infertility treatment to women over the age of 45.










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