Are you a 40+ woman looking to get pregnant? Are you a 40 or 50+ man looking to impregnate a wife or significant other? Well, don’t lose hope. Maybe 40 really is the new 30? In fact, we predict that by 2030, a 40 to 46-year-old woman having a baby will be fairly commonplace.
A quiet demographic revolution is underway. Across the United States, birth rates for women over 40 are steadily climbing, a trend that defies decades of conventional wisdom about maternal age and fertility. This shift isn’t just a result of changing social timelines; it’s a testament to a remarkable confluence of medical innovation, advanced diagnostics, and a deeper understanding of reproductive health. For countless women, the dream of motherhood later in life is transforming from a high-risk gamble into a tangible, achievable reality.
Not surprisngly, recent data from the United States and the United Kingdom reveal a historic shift: The number of births to women over 40 now surpasses those to teenagers for the first time in recorded history.
“There’s a flip in the age distribution,” said Elizabeth Wildsmith, a family demographer and sociologist at Child Trends, a nonpartisan research group.
The decline in teen births alongside the increasing number of births to women in their 40s marks a reversal that began in the 1990s.
Pregnant Over 40 Statistics
- In 2023, 4.1% of all U.S. births were to women aged 40 and older, a major increase from 1.2% in 1990.
- There are now more U.S. births to women over 40 than to teenagers, a reversal from previous decades.
- Fertility rates for women 40–44 increased by 127% from 1990 to 2023.
- Over 100,000 births in the U.S. occur in women aged 40 and older in the U.S..
Fertility and Conception Rates
- The natural conception rate per monthly cycle is about 5% at age 40, 2% at age 43, and below 1% at age 45.
- Many women over 40 use assisted reproductive technologies (ART) such as IVF or donor eggs to conceive, which increases success rates.
Outcomes and Health Considerations
- Pregnancies over age 40 are associated with higher risks of complications, including gestational diabetes, hypertension, preeclampsia, increased C-section rates, and higher rates of pregnancy loss compared to younger age groups.
- Stillbirth rates for women 40 and older are slightly elevated at about 0.81% compared to 0.61% for ages 35–39.
- With careful medical monitoring, many women over 40 can have healthy pregnancies and babies.
Would anyone have predicted this in the 1990s?
Reasons Behind the Shift
Several factors contribute to this demographic change:
Advances in Fertility Treatments: The rising success rates are not accidental. They are the direct result of targeted advancements across the entire spectrum of reproductive medicine. From sophisticated in vitro fertilization (IVF) techniques that enhance the chances of fertilization to advanced prenatal screenings that detect issues earlier than ever, science is providing powerful new pathways. These breakthroughs are creating a safer, more predictable environment for women embarking on the path to motherhood after 40.
Delayed Childbearing: Women today are increasingly obtaining higher education and building their careers, which results in them planning families later in life.
Cultural Shifts: Societal attitudes towards parenting have shifted to ensure greater acceptance and support for women who choose to have children later in life.
Decline in Teen Births: The teen birth rate decreased by 78% since 1990 because of improved sexual education programs, together with wider access to birth control and changing cultural expectations.
“For me, having a baby at this stage of life is such a thrill,” says Frances Largeman-Roth, RDN, a nutrition expert and author of Feed the Belly: The Pregnant Mom’s Healthy Eating Guide, who recently gave birth to her fourth child at 50, through the use of IVF and an egg donor.
“I kind of still can’t believe that Romy is here and that she’s healthy,” she told theBUMP.com.
“And it’s really cool to see my 13-year-old son fall in love with her, as well as my other two daughters. I thought I’d feel self-conscious that people would look at me and think I was the ‘old’ mom, but really, I’m the confident mom who’s already experienced all the baby milestones. This time, I’m savoring all of it—every little phase and giggle.”
Is this just a temporary trend?
I see this as a permanent shift. As we continue to see advancements in the medical field, pregnancies for women 40-plus will continue to rise.
WARNING: There are still fertility and health considerations for the 40+
- Women who are in their 40s experience a 5% chance of pregnancy per menstrual cycle, which contrasts with the 25% rate observed in their 20s.
- The chance of miscarriage rises with age, reaching 27–40% by the time a woman reaches 40.
- As women get older, the risk of genetic mutations in their eggs increases, which leads to a greater chance of requiring C-sections and developing gestational diabetes and chromosomal abnormalities during pregnancy.
HOWEVER, research shows that children of older mothers tend to enjoy better early childhood health and developmental outcomes due to greater parental stability and resources, as well as dedicated attention.
Just out of curiosity, what about male fertility?
OB/GYN Kirtly Jones, MD, told University of Utah Health:
Now, we haven’t talked about sperm yet, but please, let me take that opportunity. We know that men, as they get older, have abnormal sperm too. So, aging and sperm aren’t good for sperm, and there are diseases that are more common as men age. So sperm quality goes down with age, but usually not dramatically until men are a little bit older into their late 40s, 50s, and 60s. So, there is that issue. That’s the chromosomal issue that people are worried about.
Clearly, women as they get older have an older body. They have more hypertension. They may have more diabetes. They have issues that make them more likely to have complications in pregnancy. All of those go up with age, but mostly those things you can get around with a good doctor and a good hospital.
PREDICTION: There you have it! By 2030, it will be completely normal for women—and couples in general—to have babies in their 40s. And expect to see more 50-plus pregnancies as time goes on.
