Women's fertility gradually declines with age, especially in the mid-30s, and it drops rapidly after age 37. Infertility in older women is likely due to the lower number and quality of eggs, and can also be due to health problems that affect fertility. Men over age 40 may be less fertile than younger men.
Risk factors
These include: age – fertility declines with age. weight – being overweight or obese (having a BMI of 30 or over) reduces fertility; in women, being overweight or severely underweight can affect ovulation. sexually transmitted infections (STIs) – several STIs, including chlamydia, can affect fertility.
Infertility is a condition where you can't get pregnant after one year of trying to conceive. Causes of infertility can include ovulatory disorders, endometriosis, low sperm count or low testosterone. The risk of infertility increases as you age. Many treatment options are available for people with infertility.
What Causes Infertility? Problems with ovulation are the most common reasons for infertility in women. A woman's age, hormonal imbalances, weight, exposure to chemicals or radiation and cigarette smoking all have an impact on fertility.
Infertility is commonly caused by problems with ovulation (the monthly release of an egg from the ovaries). Some problems stop an egg being released at all, while others prevent an egg being released during some cycles but not others. Ovulation problems can be a result of: polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
Your menstrual cycle begins on the first day of your period and continues up to the first day of your next period. You're most fertile at the time of ovulation (when an egg is released from your ovaries), which usually occurs 12 to 14 days before your next period starts.
Infertility is defined as the inability to conceive after one year of regular, unprotected intercourse. If you or your female partner are over the age of 35, you should see a fertility specialist after six months.
You Can Track Ovulation
In a 28-day cycle, that means sometime around day 14. In a 32-day cycle, that means around day 18. But unless your cycle is totally regular from month to month, it's hard to know for sure. An ovulation predictor kit (OPK) can better determine when you're about to ovulate each cycle.
Around 17.5% of the adult population – roughly 1 in 6 worldwide – experience infertility, showing the urgent need to increase access to affordable, high-quality fertility care for those in need.
Therefore, it is also possible to get pregnant in the 2 days after ovulation, but this is less likely. As a result, there are around 21 days in the menstrual cycle on which pregnancy is less likely. The days before and during menstruation are the least fertile days of the menstrual cycle.
Of course, as women age, the odds of conceiving also gradually lower. The ideal childbearing age is often considered to be in the late 20s and early 30s. Pregnancies later in life could come with some health risks.
Male Fertility Facts
Peak male fertility is around 25-29 years old. Sperm quality begins to decline at 30. At 45, men begin to experience a significant decrease in semen volume. Older men can also take longer to conceive a child.
A woman in her early to mid-20s has a 25–30% chance of getting pregnant every month. Fertility generally starts to reduce when a woman is in her early 30s, and more so after the age of 35. By age 40, the chance of getting pregnant in any monthly cycle is around 5%.
Men do not have a 'fertile window' because sperm is continually formed and stored in the testicles, ready to be used at any time. Graphic 1 shows when pregnancy is most likely to happen in people having sexual intercourse without contraception. Day '0' is the day of ovulation when the egg is released.
If you are ovulating but not getting pregnant, the cause is may be polycystic ovaries (PCO). Again it is not uncommon, since around 20% of women have the condition.
What we do know is that withdrawal works about 78% of the time overall. But the odds of pregnancy are always higher during the 5 days leading up to, and during, ovulation — these are called fertile days. If no semen gets on your vulva or in your vagina, pregnancy can't happen — whether or not you're ovulating.
A first-of-its-kind study, published earlier this year in Human Reproduction, found that couples in North America are most likely to start trying to conceive in September, but that they are most likely to succeed in getting pregnant in late November and early December, especially if they live in southern US states.
Yep, pregnancy is only possible 6-10 days each cycle regardless of cycle length. Whether you have a textbook 28-day cycle or a random all-over-the-place cycle, if you are healthy and ovulating, you are fertile an average of 6 to 10 days per cycle. Your fertile window can begin anytime after your menstrual ends.
Lifestyle factors can affect fertility
There are factors in day-to-day life that can have an impact on fertility, including: Smoking: Smoking tobacco can damage sperm, affect reproductive hormones, and make it more difficult to get pregnant. Alcohol use: Alcohol has an effect on both men's and women's fertility.