A recent study suggests that later mothers may have smarter children because they receive more care from them. The study, conducted in Sweden by experts from the Max Planck Institute for Democratic Research in Germany and the London School of Economics and Political Science, was carried out among 1.5 million Swedes born between 1960 and 1991 .
The delay in maternity, therefore, would suppose a series of biological risks for the fetus, but on the other hand, the children of older mothers will get better grades, they will be higher and they will be healthier.
It all seems to come down to the fact that older mothers, in advanced societies, have more medical and social opportunities than younger ones . Lead author Mikko Myrskylä , who has published in Population and Development Review , has noted:
For example, if you compare two siblings who were born decades apart, on average, the child born when the mother had already turned 40 spends more than an extra year in the educational system than his brother born when the mother was a twentysomething (…) Parents are generally warned about the risks associated with late motherhood, but are less aware of the positive effects
Another British study by a group of researchers from the London School of Economics and Political Science also concludes that the children of mothers in their thirties are more intelligent because women of that age have greater mental and physical fullness , smoke less, and play more with their babies. and read more.
So is it better to have children late or early? Well, it depends on each individual case. You have to weigh the risks against the benefits. And do not forget that having late children predisposes to more diseases and perinatal mortality.
Phenomenon on the rise
According to the latest Eurostat report, the average age for becoming a mother in Spain is 31.8 years, 1.4 years above the European average of 30.4 .
Belated motherhood is a thriving international phenomenon. In just ten years, the UK has doubled the number of women who have children after 40 years. In Spain, this growth occurred in the years between 1996 and 2001, and 11% of couples have their first child when the woman is already over 35 years old.
Via | Report21