Is it too late to have a second child at the age of 38?

Older mothers are a relatively special group. Many families want to have a second child, but the policy did not allow it in the past two years. At the Fifth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China held on October 29, a policy of fully liberalizing the second child was passed. However, this has caused some concerns for some older women. So, is it too late to have a second child at the age of 38?

It’s not too late to have a second child at 38

Women over 35 years old are called older mothers. The uterine and ovarian functions of older mothers gradually decline, and the possibility of abnormal egg production increases, thereby increasing the incidence of congenital malformations and dementia. And some medical complications caused during pregnancy will be more than those in young pregnant women. In addition, older mothers are more likely to have premature babies, early fetal separation, etc., and they will have more problems during pregnancy than ordinary people. It is recommended that you seek eugenics consultation and do eugenics tests before becoming pregnant, and have regular prenatal checkups if you are pregnant.

With the increase of stress and emotional confusion, some women delay their childbearing age. If they delay until they are over 35 years old to have their first child, such women are called "older mothers."

With the implementation of the single-child policy in some areas, some older mothers are also preparing to have a second child. Older pregnant women are key targets and are more likely to have indications for cesarean section or other problems, such as gestational hypertension, prolonged labor or dystocia. In order to give birth to a healthy second baby, older mothers should pay special attention to prenatal testing and examinations, including genetic tests such as sex chromosomes, blood types, and gene analysis, examinations of organs such as the uterus, cervix, and ovaries, examinations of infections such as Trichomonas, fungi, and HPV, as well as examinations of endocrine and immunity. These examinations can reduce the occurrence of congenital diseases in babies and give birth to healthy babies for older mothers.

The medical definition refers to pregnant women over the age of 35, who are called "older mothers." To put it simply, "older mothers" refer to pregnant women who are over 35 years old and are pregnant for the first time. Generally speaking, older mothers are more likely to have delayed intrauterine language development and premature babies, and the delivery process may be prolonged or the mother may experience dystocia. The biggest worry for women who delay pregnancy is miscarriage. About 15% of pregnant women around 30 years old will suffer miscarriage; for pregnant women in their 40s, 25% will encounter this situation; and after the age of 45, half of pregnant women are at risk of miscarriage.