I read this and ask myself, how in the heck did I managed to have a child when I was almost 41? Then again, I was also a child of an older couple, so some of this must be genetic, while this study must be more general.

By the time a woman reaches 30, she’s lost 90 percent of her ovarian eggs for good, according to a new study, which suggests that the female “biological clock situation is worse than we thought," says Elan Simckes, M.D., medical director and founder of The Fertility Partnership of St. Peter’s, MO.

The study, published by the University of St. Andrews and Edinburgh University in Scotland found that 95 percent of women have less than 12 percent of their ovarian egg reserve left by age 30 and only three percent by 40.

“It sends a strong message to wannabe moms that ‘sooner is better,’ says Dr. Simckes. “I have been telling patients for years that a woman’s ability to
conceive peaks in her late teens stays fairly stable until 30 and nosedives after 35.”

At the same time the study is bolstering medical community recommendations surrounding women’s age and conception, it speaks volumes about the anxiety women over 30 face when trying to conceive.

“I knew the odds were bad, but I didn't know how bad they were,” says Mistie Thompson, of Ellisville, MO, who will turn 40 in July, and who has experienced two miscarriages trying to conceive.

She is the mom of two daughters, Faith, seven, and Gabrielle, four, but has gone through significant challenges in both pregnancies and in trying to conceive.

“Obviously, the chances are incredibly slim for me, and if I do conceive, the odds of having another miscarriage are much higher than for someone even a few years younger,” Thompson says. “I definitely wish I had known this in my 20s.

“Like many of my friends, I waited until I had finished my master's degree and was well-established in my public relations career at 31 to begin trying to conceive. My first pregnancy ended in a miscarriage, but I was able to successfully give birth to two baby girls after that, although both involved threatened miscarriages, preterm labor and long bed rests.”

Deanna Russo, a 39-year-old president of an entertainment marketing firm in Los Angeles and a self-described “career-driven and independent woman” says, “I always knew I wanted to have a child, but at some point it dawns on you, you really hope you can make it all happen within the proper window of time. Creating a healthy life is something I take very seriously. “

She says she is not surprised by the study’s findings, but it underscores the pressure she has always felt. She has decided to take her biological clock into her own hands. Not wanting to leave motherhood up to “fate,” she has chosen to have her eggs frozen.

“Between being a late bloomer and the challenges of dating in Los Angeles -- it wasn't until I was a very young 37 when I met the love of my life,” adds Russo. “I'm finally fulfilled both personally and professionally. However there’s one exception -- the love of my life is eight years younger than me. In a world of instant gratification, I knew the worst thing I could possibly do was to put unnecessary pressure on our budding relationship.”

Though it’s common knowledge that women have more difficulty conceiving as they age, this study is significant because it is the first time researchers have provided a better understanding of how many eggs a woman has in her ovaries, and provides evidence that women have a fixed number of eggs that decline with increasing age, says study researcher Tom Kelsey, Ph.D., a senior research fellow at the School of Computer Science at St Andrews. The study was based on information collected from 325 women of varying ages in the United Kingdom, the United States and Europe.

“Unfortunately, many primary care doctors do not emphasize the effect of age on fertility,” says John Jain M.D., a productive endocrinologist at the Santa Monica Fertility Center in Los Angeles .

Dr. Jain suggests that the medical community ramp up educational campaigns to increase awareness among women and health care providers.

“Many women are not aware that a fertility decline occurs in their 30s, however, when properly informed, they are often surprised and in some cases alarmed by the degree of decline,” says Jain.

The best strategy, he says “is to inform women as soon as possible.”

“Decisions on life pursuits and priorities, including single motherhood, are very personal and need time to evolve,” he says.

Another option is freezing eggs.

“Single women are increasingly freezing eggs as insurance against the biological clock,” Dr. Jain adds. “While egg freezing is still considered an experimental procedure, recent technological advances have lead to acceptable pregnancy rates. “

__________________
Deep within the dark
We sometimes catch a spark...

41!

Surely you'd worked out what was causing it by then?

I had mine at 37, and he was an "oops" . . . wasn't TRYING to get pregnant . . .