What are the pregnancy risks associated with being an older mom?

These vary: It is very common to have children later in life. Most pregnancies in women above the age of 30-35 are healthy. Some risks depend on whether or not it is a first child. Others that increase with age include increased risk for cesarean birth, medical complications like high blood pressure and diabetes, and increasing risk of chromosomal/genetic abnormalities.

Genetic and medical: Older (greater than 35) are at increased risk of fetal complications related to the aging of the maternal eggs. The risks increase with maternal age. Generally , pregnancy complications are related to the overall health of the mother. The likelyhood of acquired medical conditions also increase with age.

If >34 at delivery: There are risks for women who will be 35 at time of delivery; those odds rise with age: there are increased risks including difficulty conceiving, having a fetus with abnormal chromosomes, miscarrying (even if chromosomes are normal), developing diabetes or preeclampsia, bleeding, needing a cesarean birth, etc. But help is available, and midlife moms successfully have babies every day now.

Several: The risk of having a genetic abnormality increase as the maternal age increases. The risk of age related diseases increase correspondingly, such as diabetes and chronic hypertension, with associated gestational hypertension.