Scientists have calculated the optimal interval between pregnancies
Scientists from Harvard University in the United States, together with Canadian colleagues calculated optimal interval between pregnancies in women. In order to figure out how much better to have a second or third child, researchers had to analyze data on 150,000 pregnancies in women of different age groups over the past decade.
Taken into account individual risks, anamnesis, age of women in labor. The findings were somewhat unexpected. If today in obstetrics it is officially considered that the best period is 2-3 years, then Harvard specialists "lowered" this bar to year and a half years.
It should be noted that we are talking about natural childbirth. After cesarean section, as before, it is recommended to wait at least 2-2.5 years.
According to scientists, a pregnancy that comes less than a year after childbirth can be very, very unfavorable for both women and her baby.
Age also matters: if a woman who hurried and became pregnant earlier than a year after birth of her first child, was 20-34 years old, then the risks of complications for a baby are higher. If a woman is over 35 years old, then the risks of a hasty pregnancy are higher for her.
Detailed results of the study are presented in the authoritative edition of JAMA Internal Medicine.
According to them, women under 34 years old who became pregnant again after only six months, in 8.5% of cases, preterm labor occurred. If a woman maintains a one and a half year gap between previous births and a new pregnancy, then she has such a risk. does not exceed 3%.
In women over 35 years old, who were conceived by babies six months after birth, the risk of premature birth was 6%, whereas if the optimal interval was observed, it decreased to 2.7%.
Maternal mortality by one and a half percent was higher in women over 35 years old, if they did not comply with the interruption, the probability of receiving a disabling trauma during childbirth increased by 2.5%.
The head of the research group, Laura Schummers, said that this information is very important because it will allow both doctors and women to plan future pregnancies with minimal risks for the baby and the mother.
During the analysis of data on childbirth, scientists also found that it is common for older moms to neglect the demands to take a break between children, they often consciously ignore the recommendations to wait for the next baby to conceive. In younger women, repeated premature pregnancies usually occur by chance, unplanned.
The increased risks in the case of early pregnancy are due to the fact that the woman’s body has not yet fully recovered and recovered after giving birth, and new pregnancy is a difficult test for all organs and systems of the future mother.
