Hundreds of babies each year are being born to women over 50, according to official figures.
The number of new mothers who have reached their half century has risen by more than 300 per cent compared to 15 years ago. The number of babies born to women aged 55 or over has soared tenfold over the same period.
Figures also reveal that most get pregnant at foreign clinics before returning to the UK to give birth. Almost all have IVF using donor eggs from much younger women.
The number of new mothers who have reached their half century has risen by more than 300 per cent compared to 15 years ago
The data, covering England and Wales and produced by the Office for National Statistics for The Mail on Sunday, reveals:
l The number of births to mums over 50 rose from 55 in 2001 to 238 in 2016;
l Just two women over 55 gave birth in 2001. In 2016, there were 20;
l Between 2001 and 2016, there were 1,859 births to women over 50, including 153 to women over 55.
The figures come days after Brigitte Nielsen, the 54-year-old ex-wife of Sylvester Stallone, announced she was pregnant.
Some fertility experts are concerned that some overseas clinics are helping older women to get pregnant without ensuring they have the physical and mental ability to bring up the children.
Harley Street IVF expert Dr Gedis Grudzinskas said the absence of such checks amounted to ‘irresponsible commercial practice’ which could endanger the health of mother and child.
Separate figures from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) show more than four-fifths of those giving birth over 50 went abroad for treatment, raising concern about the cost to the NHS of treating them when they return to the UK.
In 2016, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust in London revealed it had treated 12 mothers aged 50 or over in just 12 months.
The number of babies born to women aged 55 or over has soared tenfold over 15 years
At the time, consultant obstetrician Dr Daghni Rajasingam, a spokeswoman for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists who works at the trust, said: ‘Older women’s pregnancies are more complicated, take up more resources and [health] outcomes are poorer.’
Under NHS rules, woman over 42 cannot receive free fertility treatment due to the low chance of success. However, clinics are free to set their own criteria.
Dr Peter Bowen-Simpkins, of the London Women’s Clinic, which requires women to start fertility treatment no later than the age of 53, said: ‘Apart from the medical risks, how is a woman of over 55 going to be able to bring up a baby?’
But retired psychotherapist Eleanore Armstrong-Perlman, 75, who gave birth to twin boys Nathan and Ben when she was 54, disagrees. ‘When you are older, the children are very much wanted. You’re mature, you cherish each moment with the babies so much more.’