While age certainly shouldn’t discourage you from exploring your pregnancy options, it’s a factor worth considering in the planning process.
With healthcare advancements offering options like egg freezing and IVF, more people around Australia are having children later in life.
Back in 1981, just 15 per cent of first-time mums were aged 30 or over. By 2020, that rose to 53 per cent.
In the first episode of Women’s Agenda’s new special podcast, “Fertility Unfiltered”, in partnership with Genea, we talk to fertility specialist for Genea, Dr Rashi Kalra on why it’s important for people to understand the impacts of age on fertility and their reproductive options.
“I think women should be educated early on in their reproductive years about the impacts of age on fertility – and they should be educated about what options they have to safeguard their future reproductive health if they are unable to start a family in their peak fertile window,” says Dr Kalra.
To learn about more reproductive health topics from health experts, check out the rest of the podcast series, “Fertility Unfiltered”, as new episodes are released each week. We’re creating a safe space for conversations around fertility, ranging from the possibility of parenthood, seeking guidance on reproductive health and even the science behind conception.
Why does age matter in fertility?
A woman’s eggs are affected by age and Dr Kalra explains that this can impact the likelihood of getting pregnant and carrying a baby to term.
“There is a gradual decline in the quality and quantity of a woman’s eggs which starts as early as the age of 32 and then a more rapid decline in her egg quality and egg number after 37,” she says.
“The decline in egg quality and egg number means that it can take longer for women to get pregnant as they get into their late 30s early 40s but also the rates of miscarriage can increase.”
Men also face a decline in fertility as they get older, says Dr Kalra, with sperm counts declining from the age of 40 onwards.
What is anti-mullerian hormone?
“Anti-mullerian hormone is a hormone produced by the immature eggs in a woman’s ovary,” says Dr Kalra.
“Women are all born with a finite number of eggs, and we unfortunately lose eggs as we get older. The amount of AMH in your blood correlates with how many eggs are in your ovaries now, clinically or in the fertility setting.”
While AMH peaks in the mid 20s and slowly decreases with time, Dr Kalra notes that this doesn’t predict how likely a woman is to get pregnant.
Higher levels of AMH “predicts how many eggs a woman might get if she went through a cycle of IVF,” she says. “And it helps someone like myself, the fertility doctor, to decide what dosage of medication to give a woman going through any fertility treatment.”
Can lifestyle affect fertility?
Dr Kalra says that many people don’t realise that “lifestyle changes can actually make a huge difference to a couple’s fertility”.
“One of the most important things is for – couples to maintain or achieve a healthy weight or body mass index as much as possible before they start trying to conceive so a body mass index should ideally be between 19 and 25,” she says.
Other lifestyle factors Dr Kalra says to pay attention to include, quitting smoking or vaping, minimising alcohol, exercising regularly and eating a healthy diet rich in antioxidants.
Dr Kalra also says all of her patients have an app that tracks their menstrual cycle and that “monitoring cervical mucus is a really good way to assess when you’re ovulating” so that couples have more clarity around when to try for pregnancy.
Picking up a urine testing kit from the pharmacy is another way to see if you’re ovulating as well as tracking ovulation with blood tests at a clinic.
With so many factors affecting fertility, Dr Kalra’s message is “that we need to educate society quite broadly on female fertility because it doesn’t just affect women, it affects everybody.”