Age limits on childbearing

Often the news that older celebrities are having children prompts more discussion about the appropriate age for childbearing and, by extension, the best age for rearing children.

Questions arise about the wisdom of procreation for women approaching 50. There are serious concerns as well for men around 50 or older siring children.

But right to the point, should anyone of about 50 be having a child? Is it anybody else's business? Certainly people are and should be free to make their own choices. In any event, increasing numbers of people are having children or thinking about having children later in life.

The concerns fall into three major categories: biological, financial, and psychosocial. The chief concerns are for children of very old parents.

The first concern is that the children do not suffer biological defects. These become more probable with increasing age of the parents, although there is no clear line between safe and unsafe ages for procreation. Experts hold that the chances for genetic defects in the offspring increase with the age of the father, and that childbearing gets riskier as women approach 40. More risks are piled on with each decade over 40. There are dangers especially for the mother: women who are beyond middle age are more likely to suffer complications during pregnancy and delivery.

The second major concern is that children are born into families that can support them throughout their infancy, childhood and adolescence. The wealthy can establish trust funds to ensure that children will have adequate financial resources after the death of the parents. Those with meager resources must plan on living long enough and working hard enough to sustain their offspring until they reach adulthood. The calculation of the best age for childbearing must involve, at least in part, a consideration of how much money for the children will be available and how long it will last.

The third major concern is that children and parents enjoy psychological health and have satisfying relationships. One consideration in this regard is the benefit children will derive from having active, supportive parents throughout their formative years. Rearing children places significant physical and psychological demands on parents; parents must be able to meet those demands. One possibility is that children may be disappointed when they expect but do not get their parents to participate to some degree in athletic activities. Additionally, some older parents may feel the strain that could come in socializing with other, much younger parents who have children of the same age. Some parents may be troubled by being mistaken for grandparents. Psychological adjustments will be necessary.

As a growing number of older people have children and raise them successfully, our society will become more inclined to approve the practice and better disposed to accept parents of various ages. Laws are not the best instruments for determining limits on the age for procreation. The responsibility for determining the best age rests firmly on the individuals who would give birth to a child. They must weigh the various factors and determine whether reproduction serves not only their desires but also the needs of the newborn.