Is age just a number?

More women in Singapore are giving birth in their 40s. EVELINE GAN finds out what you should know about the trend, and chats with three mums about their experiences.

A one-in-100 chance of a Down syndrome baby, one-third odds of a miscarriage and two-fold risk of stillbirth.

By medical standards, the risks of having a child at the age of 40 are unnerving enough to put a damper on any sizzling baby-making plans. But more older mums are thumbing their noses at the gloomy statistics.

Think 40-something actresses like Halle Berry and Fann Wong, both of whom defied statistical odds and delivered healthy babies.

Then, there’s 50-year-old singer Janet Jackson, who confirmed her first pregnancy and showed off her baby bump in October this year.

In fact, the number of women conceiving in their 40s has doubled over the past three decades in Singapore. Last year, there were about nine births for every 1,000 women aged 40 to 44, compared to just 4.5 in 1985, according to Singapore Department of Statistics figures.

In contrast, those delivering between 25 and 29 years old – considered the optimum age for motherhood – have halved in the last 30 years.

But is age just a number when it comes to having babies?

To a certain extent, yes. Advances in artificial reproductive techniques like in vitro fertilisation (IVF) have made it possible for couples to have babies later in life, especially for those with fertility problems, says Dr Tan Eng Loy, consultant at the department of obstetrics and gynaecology at Singapore General Hospital (SGH).

That’s because IVF boosts a woman’s chances of conceiving, regardless of her age, shares Dr Yeong Cheng Toh,consultant gynaecologist and reproductive endocrinologist at Virtus Fertility Centre Singapore.

Improvements in screening methods and better ultrasound equipment also mean that abnormalities and birth defects in unborn babies are detected more accurately early in pregnancy, according to the doctors.