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Until What Age Can You Get Pregnant?

Until what age can you get pregnant at the latest? It is one of the most frequently asked questions by women. At what age women want to become mothers is an individual decision. Today's women may have to postpone motherhood to later ages for reasons such as school, work and career. However, due to infertility problems that increase with age, risky periods may begin for women over the years. Many women wonder how long the chance of pregnancy will continue.

How Age Affects Fertility

The most important factor affecting pregnancy in women is the age factor. While the most fertile age is 22-30 years, it starts to decrease after the age of 35, pregnancy becomes very difficult after the age of 40 and theoretically it is not possible after the age of 45. But there are also miraculous pregnancies. In the literature, however, these are very rare. It is close to impossible to achieve pregnancy over the age of 45 with in vitro fertilization methods.
Fertility problems that may occur with advancing age are as follows:

The amount of eggs in the ovaries decreases.

Egg health drops.

General health is more likely to include conditions that can cause fertility problems.

The risk of miscarriage is higher.

What is Ovarian Reserve? What Does Decreasing Mean?

As soon as a girl is born, she is born with approximately 4-6 million egg cells in both ovaries, when she reaches puberty, 300-400 thousand of them remain, 1 egg is released every month with menstruation and the woman is shed. About 400-500 eggs that menstruate in the period up to menopause. It is fertilized and pregnancy occurs) After the age of 35, the ovulation process begins to accelerate and with the onset of menopause, all ovulation activities begin to end.
Of course, these numbers are different for each person. While some women go through menopause very early, there are women who do not stop ovulating and have regular periods until they are 50-55 years old. Generally, women between the ages of 45-47 enter menopause in Turkey. If this happens under the age of 40, it is called premature menopause. Menopause is a condition and not an instantaneous event, meaning a woman experiences a primal period in which she experiences occasional irregularities until her existing eggs are completely depleted. Women in this period should not wait too long for pregnancy and should choose the most effective treatment method.

How is Ovarian Reserve Measured?

Various methods are used to measure ovarian reserve. FSH, E2 and LH levels measured on the 3nd day of menstruation give information about the current status of the woman. FSH hormone, also called menopause hormone, begins to rise when the number of eggs in the ovaries decreases.
Another way to measure ovarian reserve is the AMH (antimulerian) hormone, which is controlled in the blood regardless of the menstrual day. If this hormone value is below 1.5, it indicates that the ovarian reserve has decreased. Another way to evaluate the ovarian reserve is the number of follicles observed in the ovaries by ultrasound.

Is There Any Objection to Advanced Age Pregnancies?

The decrease in ovarian reserve with age is a physiological and expected situation. As the egg reserve decreases with age, the quality of ovulation also decreases. While this decrease in quality decreases the fertilization capacity, it also increases the possibility of genetic disorders in future pregnancies. But the harder the pregnancy, the higher the chances of miscarriage and children with disabilities. This is why older women are recommended to donate eggs.