Learn How a Healthy Pregnancy after 40 Years of Age Is Possible
Age should not bar anyone from parenthood
The average age of motherhood is slowly creeping up the chronological scale. With more women seeking advanced degrees and entering the workforce to conquer the corporate world, there has been an increase in women seeking pregnancy after 40 years of age.
The whys and wherefores of first time motherhood happening with increasing frequency at advanced ages really don’t matter very much in the long run. What does matter is gaining the knowledge of the female reproductive system, which makes healthy pregnancy and motherhood possible at any age.
The Ticking Biological Clock
Many are the references to a woman’s ticking internal clock. The inference seems to be that at some mystical point in time, the clock will simply stop and along with it, all chances of fertility are lost forever. This might be a fun, comical image for entertainment purposes, but it is not exactly true. Menopause does not function like a light switch simply clicking off a completely functional and fertile reproductive system rendering it infertile and beyond resuscitation.
This inaccurate picture of complete functionality and fertility disappearing into infertility with menopause persists. The truth is a female’s reproductive cycle is more like a dimmer switch than a straight on/off switch. For most women, fertility peeks at the age of 27 and then begins a slow decline until it ceases at age 51 and menopause.
The slow slide into menopause is not of concern to some women because they followed the more traditional route of motherhood in their late twenties and early thirties. Women who postponed motherhood until the late thirties and early forties are learning the hard way that what they didn’t know is harming them.
The persistent thinking of the “one day fertile the next day not”-idea of menopause leads many to falsely believe that it is just as easy to conceive at any age just so long as the menstruation cycle is still regular.
The facts are that as much as ten years prior to menopause, there is the onset of a stage called perimenopause. The onset of perimenopause sets in motion a set of hormonal and reproductive changes that ultimately leads to menopause (the cessation of menstruation). Some of the most common changes that occur during perimonopause directly impact woman who desire pregnancy after age 40. Fertility can decline by as much as 40% in perimenopause, and this can make getting pregnant very difficult.
A Solution to Pregnancy after 40
Perimenopause can make pregnancy after 40 difficult, but not impossible. Many of the changes in the female reproductive system during perimenopause are directly affected by diet and lifestyle choices.
The body is an amazingly complex system that checks itself to maintain healthy balance. If a woman’s body is not getting the nutrients, sleep and healthy exercise needed to maintain optimum health for itself, one of the first things to be impacted is the body’s reproductive capabilities.
It is a completely logical course of action. If the body is not getting what it needs to sustain itself healthfully, how could it possibly share what it has to create a new life? This is true of any woman’s fertility, but the balance is especially tenuous as life carries a woman closer to menopause.
All that is needed to set the reproductive cycle back on a healthy function is to correct the imbalances in the body by altering poor lifestyle choices, which can have a negative impact on the body.
Boost Reproductive Health and Get your Zzz’s
One of the most common ways to boost reproductive health immediately is to increase sleep. Most women sleep an average of only 6 hours a night. This is two hours short of the recommended healthy sleep time of 8 hours.
The effects of sleep deprivation take a toll on many areas of health. Concentration difficulty and energy drain are easily observed, but what is not easily measured is a decrease in ovulation and healthy hormone levels. The change may take some getting used to, but it is well worth sacrificing a few hours spent in front of the television to have a baby.
For sleep to have its most beneficial effect, it should be scheduled. To this end, make a date with your pillow and mattress and don’t break it even on weekends. Going to bed at the same time each night and arising at the same time every morning is a small but very effective way to improve whole body health. This includes the reproductive cycle.
Hit the Gym
It is an unpopular suggestion when mentioned in connection with weight loss. Therefore, it is expected that a general lack of enthusiasm will greet the suggestion here, but it does bear suggesting.
Proper exercise helps to balance hormone levels, increase energy levels, boost overall wellbeing, and help the body maintain healthy function of all systems. Some exercises are more beneficial than others when pregnancy after 40 is the goal but some is defiantly better than none.
Herbal Supplements to Increase Fertility
One of the most helpful things which can be done to dramatically impact the vitality of a woman’s reproductive cycle is providing it with proper nutritional support. A healthy diet filled with the right foods and a mutli-vitamin is a step in the right direction but by no means the best or only thing that can be done.
Many herbs have shown in clinical trials an especially potent effect on almost every aspect of the female menstrual cycle and reproductive system. Herbs are so powerful that they should be used carefully with special directions and dosages.
To learn more about which herbs have the best effect on pregnancy after 40, or which exercises are most beneficial for pregnancy click here.
