Tami Roman is no stranger to television. She began in 1993, as a “Real World” cast member. Currently she is one of the five main characters on VH1’s reality series: “Basketball Wives”. But many people don’t know that she is also a model, a business woman, and that at the age of 45, she is pregnant with a child.
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Roman, who has two kids from her previous marriage to NBA player Kenny Anderson, has just announced her six-week pregnancy, at the age of 45. In an interview, she explained her desire to bare a third child in her forties. “I am in a committed relationship with a younger man who has never had children. …I decided to have a child with him and I am happy I made the decision to do so.” The man she is referring to is her current 28-year-old boyfriend, Reggie Youngblood.
While Roman revealed that she has always been fertile, for many other women over 40, they are panicking as their biological clock ticks. Now, this doesn’t mean it’s impossible. Nothing is impossible. But after the age of 35, women have 10%-15% chance of becoming pregnant.
Dr. Melinda Miller-Thrasher, OB GYN of Innovative Women’s HealthCare Solutions explains why aging decreases your probability of giving birth. “Think of it this way: you are born with all the eggs you will ever have. The ‘best’ eggs those more likely to result in successful pregnancies, are the first to be recruited, leaving those less favorable eggs for last. Therefore, those eggs left as we age are less likely to result in successful pregnancies and more likely to result in miscarriages.”
Although all pregnancies carry their own risks regardless of age, a woman over the age of forty takes on additional risks. The miscarriage rate can be as high as 90% for women over forty, according to Dr. Thrasher. Other risks include chromosomal abnormalities….
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“Increasing age is associated with an increased risk of chromosomal abnormalities, including Down’s Syndrome and other more serious conditions, which carry a high mortality rate for the fetus or newborn infant.”
With that being said, let’s explore some of the ways to women can be assisted with pregnancy:
– In vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment: involves combining eggs and sperm outside the body in a laboratory. Once an embryo or embryos form, they are then placed in the uterus. IVF is a complex procedure, averaging out to about $15,000 per treatment. The success rate is 6% in women over 40.
– Egg Freezing: includes the retrieval of an egg during a cycle (many women will require more than one) the storing of the eggs, and for the reinsertion. Costs range anywhere from $20,000-$50,000. Some experts believe that freezing eggs has no effect on fertilization while others argue that it decreases probability.
-Donated Egg: In the US they are anonymous donors or semi-anonymous donors recruited by egg donor agencies or IVF clinics. Such donors may also be non-anonymous donors, i.e., they may exchange identifying and contact information with the recipients. In most countries other than the US and UK, the law requires such donors to remain anonymous.
A preconception counseling visit with your physician will allow you to discuss your health, your desire for future childbearing, and what steps you can take before, during and after pregnancy to ensure your health and the health of your most precious commodity: your unborn child.
For more on staying healthy before, after and during pregnancy, click here.
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