Pregnant after 40

1. More and more women in the Netherlands do not have their first child until after their 40th birthday. Often because they did not meet the right partner until late. Or precisely because they still haven't run into them, and are now opting for single motherhood. But is getting pregnant after 40 as easy as it seems?

1. Nowadays we stumble over the stories of - mostly American - stars who have their first baby (or twins!) Around their 40th - or even 50th. What the story often doesn't tell is how they got pregnant. Maybe they just got lucky and got pregnant spontaneously. But it is still not that obvious after your 40th birthday.

2. Nowadays we stumble over the stories of - especially American - stars who have their first baby (or twins!) Around their 40th - or even 50th. What the story often doesn't tell is how they got pregnant. Maybe they just got lucky and got pregnant spontaneously. But it is still not that obvious after your 40th birthday.

Smart girl is on time

1. The Dutch woman is on average 29.8 years old when she has her first child. The optimal age for a woman to have children is between 18 and 30 years old. A â € smartâ € ™ girl has her pregnancy on time. Because when you're 30, you still have a 20 percent chance of getting pregnant every month, but that chance drops to 5 percent when you're 40. Not everyone is aware of this or has the opportunity to fulfill their desire to have children in time. What are your options if you are forced to postpone your desire to have children?

2. The Dutch woman is on average 29.8 years old when she has her first child. The optimal age for a woman to have children is between 18 and 30 years old. A â € smartâ € ™ girl has her pregnancy on time. Because when you're 30, you still have a 20 percent chance of getting pregnant every month, but that chance drops to 5 percent when you're 40. Not everyone is aware of this or is able to fulfill their desire to have children in time. What are your options if you are forced to postpone your desire to have children?

Freezing eggs

1. If you arrive on time, you can have your eggs frozen. You must first undergo an egg puncture, the first part of an IVF treatment. You can have your eggs frozen up to and including the age of 39, because after that the chance of success per egg becomes too low. Later, the eggs can be thawed and fertilized with IVF or ICSI treatment. Fertilized egg cells (embryos) can be replaced up to the age of 49.

Many eggs needed

1. Freezing your eggs is not cheap, and of course you don't get a guarantee of success. If you are under 35 when you freeze your eggs, you have a 5 percent chance of getting pregnant with one frozen egg. For one live born child you need approximately 20-25 egg cells. The older you are, the more eggs you need. So you have to weigh that carefully before you spend the approximately 4000 euros that one treatment costs. Most women need 2-3 treatments. Those costs are not reimbursed by the health insurers if you do not have a medical indication.

Does IVF offer added value?

1. If you do not have eggs in the freezer after the age of 40, and you do not get pregnant spontaneously, then IVF might seem like a solution. But if your only problem is your age, the question is whether that really offers added value. This is currently being investigated in the IVF38 + study. IVF treatment with your own eggs is possible in the Netherlands up to the age of 45 and is reimbursed up to and including the age of 42.

2. If you do not have eggs in the freezer after the age of 40, and you do not get pregnant spontaneously, then IVF might seem like a solution. But if your only problem is your age, the question is whether that really offers added value. This is currently being investigated in the IVF38 + study. IVF treatment with your own eggs is possible in the Netherlands up to the age of 45 and is reimbursed up to the age of 42.

Younger eggs are scarce

1. So it may well be that you end up needing the younger eggs from an egg donor. This is allowed in the Netherlands up to the age of 50, but is not reimbursed between the ages of 43 and 50. In addition, you are faced with the question of whether you want to have a baby that is genetically not yours. For many people, the desire to have children is so urgent that they eventually get over it. However, they immediately encounter the following barrier: The Netherlands has a serious shortage of egg donors; the waiting time can be up to several years.

2. So it may well be that you end up needing the younger eggs from an egg donor. This is allowed in the Netherlands up to the age of 50, but is not reimbursed between the ages of 43 and 50. In addition, you are faced with the question of whether you want to have a baby that is genetically not yours. For many people, the desire to have children is so urgent that they eventually get over it. They immediately encounter the following barrier: The Netherlands has a serious shortage of egg donors; the waiting time can be up to several years.

Expensive and anonymous

1. In some other countries more egg donors are available. However, treatment abroad is not always fully reimbursed here and costs a few thousand euros. In addition, egg donation is anonymous in many countries where there are enough donors. Your child will never know who the donor is. And we wanted to get rid of that in the Netherlands. Since 2004, it has not been permitted in the Netherlands to donate sperm or egg cells anonymously, so that the child can contact the donor later.

Age will no longer play a role

1. It won't be too long before age no longer plays a role in reproduction. In fact, they are working on what may be the greatest fertility revolution ever: in vitro ametogenesis (IVG). This is a technique with which sperm and egg cells can be made in the laboratory from embryonic stem cells and even from 'normal' body cells. The latter makes it possible for anyone who does not have good sperm or egg cells (anymore) to have a genetic child of their own.

2. It will not be too long before age no longer plays a role in reproduction. Indeed, they are working on perhaps the greatest fertility revolution ever: in vitro ametogenesis (IVG). This is a technique with which sperm and egg cells can be made in the laboratory from embryonic stem cells and even from 'normal' body cells. The latter makes it possible for anyone who does not have good sperm or egg cells (anymore) to have a genetic child of their own.

Within ten to twenty years Freezing your eggs is then no longer necessary, because they can always be grown in the laboratory. Healthy mice have already been born using this method in Japan and China. It is estimated that technically this can also be done in humans within ten to twenty years. There are still a number of ethical and social dilemmas involved. We can therefore expect a discussion in the Netherlands in the coming years about the desirability and consequences of IVG for individuals and society. Don't miss anything?

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