It is a good idea for moms to have kids after 40

SO YOU thought having babies after 40 was a bad idea? It turns out that middle- aged mothering may, in fact, be good for your children.

A recent report says that older mothers make better parents.

Researchers at the Institute of Child Health, University College London, said children born to mothers over 40 are less likely to have accidents, develop a broader vocabulary from a young age, and score higher in IQ tests. These mothers were better at spotting and avoiding potentially risky situations for their children too.

For a lot of women here too, the tickling biological clock doesn't matter anymore. " There is a huge rise in the number of women who become first- time moms after 35. About 30 per cent of women who come to us belong to the late pregnancy category.

marry late and delay motherhood too. Women want to be financially stable in their careers and don't jump into motherhood till they are mentally ready for it," Dr Asha Sharma, consultant, obstetritics and gynaecology, Rockland hospital, said.

While there might be physical complications, mentally it's just the perfect time to be a mom.

"Older first-time mothers are more mature, patient and tolerant. They are also more responsible when it comes to taking the doctors' advice seriously," she said.

For Nirmala Nathan Singh, turning a mother after the age of 40 was a decision she would never regret. " It's great to be a parent after 40 because understanding is higher. In short, you know better. There were complications when my sons were born as they were premature babies. But that hasn't affected them as now they are perfectly healthy, smart and intelligent," she said.

Though technologically, there is much help available in terms of infertility treatments and diagnostic tests, doctors pointed out that medical complications are the biggest deterrent. "There is a 20 per cent rise in late motherhood cases over the past few years. But there are medical complications from difficulty in conceiving to children born with the down's syndrome and diabetes, among others. Some of these problems can be prevented by right detection techniques during the last stage of pregnancy," Dr Nadir said.

But for these mothers, age hardly matters. "You are never too old to be a mom," Singh said.

Reproduced From Mail Today. Copyright 2012. MTNPL. All rights reserved.