It's time to update this quote:

"In 2009, there were 105,827 live births in the United States to women ages 40 through 44 -- 7,320 live births to women 45 to 49 -- 569 live births to women 50-54.
In 2009, there were only 783 live births to women over 43, using donor eggs.""

Checking the 2018 birth stats today at the CDC and I found:

Age of mother

Women in their 40s -- The birth rate for women aged 40–44 was 11.8 births per 1,000 women in 2018, up 2% from 2017; the rate for this group has risen almost continuously since 1985. The number of births to women in their early 40s rose 2% from 2017 to 2018.

Women aged 45-49 -- The birth rate for women aged 45–49 (which includes births to women aged 50 and over) was 0.9 births per 1,000 women in 2018, unchanged from 2017. The number of births to women aged 45 and over was also unchanged from 2017 to 2018.

Women aged 50 and over -- There were 959 births to women aged 50 and over in 2018, up from 840 in 2017. The number of births to women in this age group has generally increased since 1997 (from 144 births), when data for women aged 50 and over became available again. The birth rate for women aged 50–54 rose to 0.9 births per 10,000 women in 2018, from 0.8 in 2017.

TOTAL (40-54) : 126,956 live births

NOTE: In this report, tables labeled 45-49 years, 45-54 years, and 50-54 years include births to mothers up to age 64.

Next I went to SART, who has the 2017 IVF and Donor Egg rates in the US:

Fresh Embryos From Non-Donor Oocytes
Number of cycles : (41-42) 12,258 (over 42) 8,652

Percentage of cycles resulting in live births : (41-42) 12.8 (over 42) 4.4

Total live births : (41-42) 1,569 (over 42) 381

TOTAL (over 40) : 1,950

Donor Oocytes (all ages)

Number of transfers : (Fresh Donor Eggs) 3,146 (Frozen Donor Eggs) 3,013 (Donated Embryos) 1,697 (Thawed Embryos) 12,481

Percentage of transfers resulting in live births : (Fresh) 49.2 (Frozen) 43.1 (Donated Embryos) 42.8 (Thawed Embryos) 46.2



Total Live Births : (Fresh) 1,548 (Frozen) 1,298 (Donated Embryos) 726 (Thawed Embryos) 5,766

TOTAL births by Donor Egg/Embryos (all ages) : 9,338

Source: www.Sartcorsonline.com

Picture credit: CDC.gov

How old were the women who used ART in the United States in 2017?Figure 3: The largest group of women using ART services were women younger than age 35. These women represented approximately 38% of all ART cycles performed in 2017. About 20% of ART cycles were performed among women aged 35–37, 19% among women aged 38–40, 10% among women aged 41–42, 7% among women aged 43–44, and 6% among women older than age 44. The average age of women using ART services in 2017 was 36.

How did the types of ART cycles used in the United States differ among women of different ages?
Figure 4 shows that, in 2017, the percentage of ART cycles in which a woman used her own eggs declined with age, while the percentage of ART cycles using a donor egg increased with age. The vast majority (96%) of women younger than age 35 used their own eggs (nondonor), and about 4% used donor eggs. In contrast, 35% of women aged 43–44 and 68% of women older than age 44 used donor eggs.

Was the use of donor eggs or embryos higher among older women undergoing ART?
The percentage of cycles performed with donor eggs increased sharply after age 40. Among women older than age 48, for example, approximately 86% of all ART cycles used donor eggs. Eggs produced by women in older age groups form embryos that are less likely to implant and more likely to result in miscarriage if they do implant.

Number of live-birth deliveries to women using Donor Egg older than 44 in 2017: 654

Source: CDC.gov/art

So the updated quote will become:

"In 2018, there were 126,956 live births in the United States to women ages 40 through 54 -- 959 of those live births to women 50-54.
In 2017, there were only 654 live births to women over 43, using donor eggs."

Here's a list of clinics in the UK which will treat women 45 or over.
Can't guarantee how accurate this info is, as it's several years old.

Birmingham Women's Hospital
The Fertility Centre is located on the second floor of our Women's hospital.
- providing a full range of services from diagnosis of infertility, to IVF and ICSI treatment, treatment with donated eggs or sperm, surrogacy, fertility preservation for a range of medical issues and pre-implantation genetic diagnosis.

BMI Priory Hospital
-- Donor insemination (DI), Embryo cryopreservation (freezing) and frozen-thawed embryo transfer (FET), Intrauterine Insemination (IUI), Invitro fertilisation & embryo transfer (IVF), IVF and Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), Ovum and embryo donations, Surgical Sperm Recovery (e.g. Microsurgical Epididymal Sperm Aspiration MESA), Time lapse embryo monitoring system (Primo VisionTM)

Diana, Princess of Wales Centre for Reproductive Medicine
St Georges Hospital NHS Trust, 3rd Floor
Lanesborough Wing, Cranmer Terrace
London, SW17 0RE
50 years max, relationship 1 year minimum

Essex Fertility Centre
Holly House Hospital
High Road, Buckhurst Hill
Tel: 020 8505 3315
Clinical Director: Mr Michael Ah-Moye (1977)
One cycle of IVF: £ 2100
One cycle of IUI W/Donor: £ 650
50 years max

Hartlepool General Hospital
Holdforth Road
Hartlepool, TS24 9SH
Tel: 01429 522 866
Clinical Director: Mr M Menabawey (1968)
One cycle of IVF: £ 2300
One cycle of IUI W/Donor: £ 270
50 years for private patients if FSH level is less than 15 u/L

London Female and Male Fertility Centre
Highgate Private Hospital
17-19 View Road
London, N6 4DJ
Tel: 020 8347 5081
Clinical Director: Mr A Abdel Gadir (1972)One cycle of IVF: £ 1840
One cycle of IUI W/Donor: £ 675
50 years max, minimum 6 months relationship, number of previous cycles and maternal weight may be considered in consultation

London Women's Clinic
113-115 Harley Street
London, W1N 1DG
Tel: 020 7487 5050
Clinical Director: Ms Jinan Bekir (1968)
One cycle of IVF: £ 2100
One cycle of IUI W/Donor: £ 490
46 years max, 50 years for donated eggs

Maidstone Fertility Centre
Kent Medical Imaging
60 Churchill Square, King's Hill
West Malling, ME19 4DU
Tel: 01732 529 643
Clinical Director: Professor Ian Craft
One cycle of IVF: £ 1800
One cycle of IUI W/Donor: £ 650 (1 insemination -2 insemination = £700)
55 years max, smokers encouraged to stop

Manchester Fertility Services
Manchester BUPA Hospital
Russell House, Russell Road
Whalley Range, M16 8AJ
Tel: 0161 862 9567
Clinical Director: Dr Brian A Lieberman (1965)
One cycle of IVF: £ 1990
One cycle of IUI W/Donor: £ 420

Midland Fertility Services
3rd Floor, Centre House
Court Parade
Aldridge, WS9 8LT
Tel: 01922 455911
50 years - but dependent upon individual circumstances

St Jude's Clinic for Fertility and Gynaecology
The White House
194 Penn Road
Wolverhampton, WV3 0EQ
Tel: 01902 620 831
Clinical Director: Mr Jude Adeghe (1980)
One cycle of IVF: £ 1600
One cycle of IUI W/Donor: £ 500
50 years max

The Cromwell IVF and Fertility Centre
Cromwell Hospital
Cromwell Road
London, SW5 0TU
Tel: 020 7460 5713
Clinical Director: Mr Eric Simons (1961)One cycle of IVF: £ 2850 (under review)
One cycle of IUI W/Donor: £ 660
58 years max if using donor eggs

The Peninsular Centre for Reproductive Medicine
Exeter Fertility Clinic, Heavitree Hospital
Gladstone Road
Exeter, EX1 2ED
Tel: 01392 405 051
Clinical Director: Mr Jonathan H West (1978)
One cycle of IVF: £ 1868
One cycle of IUI W/Donor: £ 370
50 years max, M 60 years max, minimum 1 year relationship, BMI within normal range

Washington Hospital Cromwell IVF and Fertility Unit
The BUPA Washington Hospital
Picktree Lane, Rickleton
Washington, NE38 9JZ
Tel: 0191 417 6463
One cycle of IVF: £ 2250
One cycle of IUI W/Donor: £ 535
58 years max, stable heterosexual relationship required, egg donors must cease smoking 3 months before treatment, weight loss advised if BMI greater than 30

Winterbourne Fertility Centre
The Winterbourne Hospital
Herringston Road
Dorchester, DT1 2DR
Tel: 01305 263 252
Clinical Director: Mr Michael Dooley (1980)One cycle of IVF: £ 2490
One cycle of IUI W/Donor: £ 575
50 years max

Source: Can you please help me

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
The Infertility Cleanse: Detox, Diet and Dharma for Fertility
by Tami Quinn and Beth Heller

-- Women who are trying to conceive will find a holistic approach in this hands-on manual.

Step-by-step guidelines help implement a three-part program — of yoga, hypoallergenic and anti-inflammatory nutrition, and stress-reduction techniques — to cleanse the body, mind, and spirit in preparation for pregnancy.

In addition, this program draws on cleansing methods from traditional Chinese medicine and Ayurveda and has been specifically designed for women who are trying naturally or with assisted-reproduction plans.

Also based on new clinical research that suggests that gut health, chronic inflammation, and environmental toxins may be root causes of infertility, this important book offers all women a natural, holistic approach to readying the womb for a child.

Paperback: 192 pages
Click to order/for more info: The Infertility Cleanse

Start reading The Infertility Cleanse on your Kindle in under a minute!

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ABSTRACT: Although the transfer of fertilized donor oocytes is the most efficacious mode of conception for infertile women with hypergonadotrophism associated with incipient or apparent ovarian failure, there are many individuals who, for religious, ethical, or personal reasons, would prefer to try to conceive with their own oocytes.

The three cases presented here represent extremes to date for (i) highest serum FSH concentration in a woman with incipient ovarian failure (n = 2), and (ii) the oldest woman with apparent overt ovarian failure (n = 1) to have successful pregnancies. All three cases were treated for only a short time with pharmacological dosages of ethinyl oestradiol with luteal phase support with progesterone.

The peak FSH (mIU/ml) in cases 1 and 2 was 143 and 127 respectively. The precedents set in these cases can help physician-patient consultation when patients inquire whether there is a certain critical FSH concentration above which pregnancy is not possible or an age over which successful pregnancy could not be achieved even if ovulation despite ovarian failure was possible.

First case: A 36-year-old gravida 1, para 1 presented with a 3-year history of infertility. Her estradiol was less than 20 pg/ml, her FSH was 143 mIU/ml. Conceived 2nd cycle, delivered vaginally at full term.

Second case: A 35-year-old woman presented with primary infertility and oligomenorrhoea. FSH of 22 mIU/ml, estradiol was less than 20 pg/ml. She had a successful full-term delivery.

Third case: a 45y old woman, last menstrual period was 6 months previously, FSH of 35. She delivered a full-term healthy baby.

Read more: Human Reproduction, Vol. 15, No. 8, 1709-1712, August 2000© 2000 European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
3 Steps to Fertility
by Marina Nicholas

-- The world of infertility can be complex and daunting.

This book helps couples navigate the world of infertility treatment and tells them how they can maximize their chances of conceiving by following the three essential steps—gaining a full understanding of what conception entails, completing the necessary fertility tests at the appropriate time, and choosing the treatment that will improve their chances of having a baby.

Each infertile couple is unique, and what suits one couple may not suit another.

Some may be more comfortable first looking into complementary therapies while others will opt for immediate in-vitro fertilization.

With detailed information on assisted conception techniques, all possible tests, and how diet, ovulation tracking, hypnotherapy, reflexology, acupuncture, and herbal medicine can improve one's chances of having a baby, this book will help all couples find the right approach for them.

It also will ensure they are both better informed and more open to all forms of treatment as they embark on their journeys to parenthood.

Paperback: 160 pages
Click to order/for more info: 3 Steps to Fertility

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Announcing the Donor Concierge web site, filled with information for intended parents looking for that perfect egg donor or surrogate to help build their family.

Gail Sexton Anderson, founder, has made sure the site has all of the facts to guide intended parents through the Donor Concierge search process.

Included in the web site is an extensive Resource page as well as a Testimonials page, plus Gail's Blog.

Donor Concierge provides a comprehensive search to help intended parents find the egg donor or surrogate candidates that meet their criteria.

Gail also provides counseling as they consider the options available and to give advice as needed.

Only when intended parents reserve an egg donor or surrogate directly with the agency, will Donor Concierge step back, and at that time, the chosen agency takes over the process to complete the match and manage the cycle in conjunction with the intended parents infertility clinic.

About Donor Concierge:
Donor Concierge is a personalized search and consulting service with access to over 20,000 egg donors through more than 100 trusted egg donor agencies, as well as many reliable surrogacy programs, across the country. Gail Sexton Anderson, founder of Donor Concierge, conducts an extensive search for her clients quickly and efficiently and has helped hundreds of intended parents by taking the overwhelm out of what can be a stressful process. Donor Concierge can usually find a minimum of 8 to a maximum of 28 egg donor candidates within a few days of the initial phone conversation. Gail has also been able to find excellent available surrogates in two weeks or less. Most of the agencies Donor Concierge works with give a discount to their Donor Concierge clients', which covers the cost of the Donor Concierge search fee.

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
Making Babies: A Proven 3-Month Program for Maximum Fertility
by Sami S. David and Jill Blakeway
-- MAKING BABIES offers a proven 3-month program designed to help any woman get pregnant.

Fertility medicine today is all about aggressive surgical, chemical, and technological intervention, but Dr. David and Blakeway know a better way.

Starting by identifying fertility types, they cover everything from recognizing the causes of fertility problems to making lifestyle choices to enhance fertility to trying surprising strategies such as taking cough medicine, decreasing doses of fertility drugs, or getting acupuncture along with IVF.

MAKING BABIES is a must-have for every woman trying to conceive, whether naturally or through medical intervention.

Dr. David and Blakeway are revolutionizing the fertility field, one baby at a time.

Paperback: 384 pages
Click to order/for more info: Making Babies

Start reading Making Babies on your Kindle in under a minute!

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

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Northeast Assisted Fertility Group, Inc. -- an alliance of leading independent third party reproduction professionals -- has launched a blog. It is intended to address the complexities of third-party reproduction (egg donation and surrogacy). Using a combination of opinions and hard data, the NAFG blog is a valuable resource to anyone following trends in fertility treatment.

October 20, 2008 -- The Northeast Assisted Fertility Group (NAFG) blog, provides up-to-date information on the complexities of third party reproduction (egg donation and surrogacy): AssistedFertilityBlog.com

The goal of this blog is to separate myth from reality in these controversial branches of fertility treatment by providing sound information and data, reasoned opinion, practical advice, and inside knowledge based on real-life experience.

The blog's target audience includes egg donor recipients and egg donors, surrogates/carriers, intended parents, fertility industry professionals and advocates, media, and the public at large. The content is timely and updated frequently, easy to search, and written in a clear, accessible style.

Themes covered include issues such as the economy and the United States Presidential election, as well as practical guidance for those considering using an egg donation program or donating eggs for the first time.

Other entries will consider the ethical, legal, psychological, political, financial, and practical aspects of being an egg donor, a surrogate mother or intended parent.

As infertility literature has become a genre in its own right, the blog will review and recommend books to enrich our understanding.

The blog's main contributor is Katherine Benardo, gestational carrier/egg donor program manager of NAFG. According to Benardo, there is a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding surrounding these topics, both within the general public as well as those experiencing infertility. The blog will respond to the sensationalism with accurate information, and offer support to those going through fertility treatment.

The blog also features special guest contributions from assisted fertility attorneys and other industry professionals, as well as those who have created their families through surrogacy and egg donation.

Users will be able to subscribe to the Assisted Fertility Blog via email or RSS, including personalized sites such as My Yahoo!, MyAOL or iGoogle. The site is optimized for seamless integration with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Digg, and other popular social media websites.

Anyone interested in following trends related to fertility treatment is encouraged to take advantage of this invaluable resource by visiting the blog and joining the discussion. Everyone involved in these fields has their own unique experience and point of view.

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
But I Don't Feel Too Old to Be a Mommy! The Complete Sourcebook for Starting (and Re-Starting) Motherhood Beyond 35 and After 40
by Doreen Nagle

-- The first and only book to fully address the concerns of the ever-growing but greatly ignored the audience of literate, educated women who have delayed motherhood.

In this comprehensive work, women who are considering parenting in their 30s, 40s, and later - whether for the first time or starting over-will find all the information they need to make informed choices.

Complete with quotes from medical experts, later-in-life moms, and their kids, this one-stop book will calm the doubts and fears of women considering motherhood after 35 and beyond 40 by providing supportive yet realistic information.

Paperback: 275 pages
Click to order/for more info: But I Don't Feel Too Old to Be a Mommy!

Start reading But I Don't Feel Too Old to Be a Mommy! on your Kindle in under a minute!

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

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Photo credit: Pregnant, by David Roseborough

New studiesstate 27 years old now considered on the cusp of advanced age (something about it getting much harder to conceive after age 26).

Researchers find the probability for pregnancy is twice as high for women between 19 and 26 years old - when compared to women ages 35 to 39 years old.

The previous belief was fertility begins to drop significantly when a woman is in her early thirties.

One study shows the drop actually starts to happen at about age 27.

While these young women still represent a minority of infertility patients, their numbers are growing, thanks to an exploding fertility industry and an information blitz in the media and on the Internet about the risks of waiting too long to have children.

There are little recent hard data on the trend, though, so the evidence is largely anecdotal, coming from doctors and patients alike.

From 1995 to 2002 -- the most recent year for which statistics are available -- the percentage of female college graduates 22 to 29 years of age who had received fertility treatments at some point in their lives doubled, to 23 percent, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Survey of Family Growth.

At Conceive magazine, a publication aimed at women trying to get pregnant, 46 percent of readers are younger than 30 years of age (73 percent of the readers are younger than 35) and 86 percent have college degrees or higher.

Don't think it's possible one day you will be told you are too old to have a baby? This is the problem when we restrict reproductive rights.

I do worry about a woman over 60 having a baby. I worry about the use of donor eggs. I worry about the effect all the fertility drugs have on women going thru IVF. I even worry about the effects of adoption, on the child and on the family - beyond the fact it's better to be adopted than have no parents.

But they usually don't allow an older woman to adopt unless they take an older child or a special needs child. The majority of doctors won't help a woman over 45 years old to get pregnant with her own eggs. Most REs won't even help a woman over 50 years old get pregnant with donor eggs.

So it's not likely there are suddenly going to be tons of women having babies in their sixties. That's why it is so sensationalized when a doctor breaks all the rules and helps a woman get pregnant at such an advanced age.

Who says you're too old?

It's not hard to understand the fears surrounding conception. Yes, the statistics show a woman's fertility declines as she ages, but you must keep in mind these numbers may have nothing to do with YOU.

In fact, over the last 20 years, births to women over age 40 have increased by 50%... And in 1991, 92,000 women in the U.S. over age 40 had babies. That number continues to rise.

A lot of forty-something women don't realize how fertile they are, which may account for the fact they are second only to women ages 18-25 in the frequency of abortions. Who says your eggs are too old?

Furthermore, you should know the vast majority of babies born to women in their forties are healthy. And in healthy women, the vast majority of pregnancies are completed without a hitch.

- Christiane Northrup, M.D., Health Wisdom for Women (July 1997)

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
It Starts with the Egg:
How the Science of Egg Quality Can Help You Get Pregnant Naturally, Prevent Miscarriage, and Improve Your Odds in IVF
by Rebecca Fett

-- Whether you are trying to conceive naturally or through IVF, the quality of your eggs will have a powerful impact on how long it takes you to get pregnant and whether you face an increased risk of miscarriage.

Poor egg quality is emerging as the single most important cause of age-related infertility, recurrent miscarriage, and failed IVF cycles. It is also a major contributor to infertility in PCOS.

Based on a comprehensive investigation of a vast array of scientific research, It Starts with the Egg reveals a groundbreaking new approach for improving egg quality and fertility.

With a concrete strategy including minimizing exposure to toxins such as BPA and phthalates, choosing the right vitamins and supplements to safeguard developing eggs, and harnessing nutritional advice shown to boost IVF success rates, this book offers practical solutions to will help you get pregnant faster and deliver a healthy baby.

Paperback: 304 pages
Click to order/for more info: It Starts with the Egg

Start reading It Starts with the Egg on your Kindle in under a minute!

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Global IVF strives to bring you the most current and useful information regarding all things infertility related around the world.

Every month, Global IVFfeatures experts in their field – a reproductive endocrinologist, a reproductive clinic, an embryologist, a reproductive lawyer, a medical tourism company, a therapist, etc.

Not only will you be privy to their inside information and expertise, with many of them you will have the chance to ask and get answers to your own specific questions!

The first video in a three part series featured Guest Expert Dr. Daniel Potter of Huntington Reproductive Center and MicroSort West in Laguna Beach CA.

Doctor Potter's active research interests include gender selection, ovarian reserve testing, endometrial preparation for IVF with donor egg, embryo cryopreservation and frozen embryo transfer.

Dr. Potter is also author of the book: What to Do When You Can't Get Pregnant: The Complete Guide to All the Technologies for Couples Facing Fertility Problems (Marlow and Company, New York, New York 2005.)

About Global IVF:
To fill the niche in the ever-growing trend in cross-border travel for reproductive care, Kathryn Kaycoff-Manos and Lauri Berger de Brito founded Global IVF.com, the ultimate Global Guide devoted to Infertility and all related services available worldwide.

Free membership to GlobalIVF.com also includes bi-monthly newsletters and full access to Global IVF's blogs and online chat forums, allowing intended parents to share experiences and collect advice about specific clinics and treatments currently offered worldwide.

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
What to Do When You Can't Get Pregnant: The Complete Guide to All the Technologies for Couples Facing Fertility Problems
by Daniel A. Potter and Jennifer S. Hanin

-- Infertility can be a couple's biggest nightmare, and for many of them, technology is the only place to turn for a chance at successfully conceiving their own child.

In What to Do When You Can't Get Pregnant, world-renowned fertility expert Dr. Daniel A. Potter and Jennifer S. Hanin—a journalist who conceived twin girls through in vitro fertilization — walk readers step-by-step through the intricate process of having a baby using the latest technologies, sharing insider information on all possible procedures, how to choose the right doctor, what questions to ask, and how to live a healthy fertile lifestyle to increase the chances of success.

For the first time, readers will have access to detailed information on the very latest scientific advances in the field, including pre-screening for genetic diseases, gender-choosing, and pre-selecting desirable traits for children.

Paperback: 288 pages
Click to order/for more info: What to Do When You Can't Get Pregnant

Start reading What to Do When You Can't Get Pregnant on your Kindle in under a minute!

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

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Photo credit: Photo courtesy Of Jennalee Ryan - All rights reserved

Firm Lets Clients Pick Among Fertilized Eggs

A Texas company has started producing batches of ready-made embryos that single women and infertile couples can order after reviewing detailed information about the race, education, appearance, personality and other characteristics of the egg and sperm donors.

We're just trying to help people have babies, said Jennalee Ryan, who arranged for an egg donor to start medical treatments to produce a second batch of embryos this week.

For me, that's what this is all about: helping make babies.

But the embryo brokerage, which calls itself the world's first human embryo bank, raises alarm among some fertility experts and bioethicists, who say the service marks another disturbing step toward commercialization of human reproduction and designer babies.

By Rob Stein / Washington Post Staff Writer

Read the full article

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
In Vitro Fertilization: The A.R.T. of Making Babies
( Assisted Reproductive Technology )
by Geoffrey Sher, Virginia Marriage Davis, Jean Stoess

-- This clearly written technical handbook guides couples who are trying to conceive in determining whether they are eligible for in vitro fertilization (IVF), and in selecting the program that will help them achieve the best results.

It describes in detail the anatomy and physiology of conception and the steps required for realizing it in the IVF procedure.

In addition to providing accurate information, the practitioner authors address emotional, financial, physical, and moral-religious issues involved in the decision to conceive with medical assistance.

Despite its experimental reputation and persistent high cost, IVF is an appropriate option for many of the estimated 3.3 million infertile couples in the U.S. today, so this specialized manual speaks to a rather large audience of potential users.

Paperback: 312 pages
Click to order/for more info: In Vitro Fertilization

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The average age of women becoming mothers has risen in the United States, and in the last 20 years, a few women have even entered motherhood in their 60s.

By implanting embryos produced by in-vitro fertilization using egg cells donated by younger women, women who have passed menopause can become pregnant and give birth.

A new study of 101 women age 50 and older who had children using donated eggs reveals that pregnancy at this age carries about the same risks as similarly induced pregnancies in younger women.

The study is the largest one to date looking at pregnancy in post-menopausal women.

Read more: Pregnant Women Over 50 Do Pretty Well Study Finds

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
The Infertility Cure: The Ancient Chinese Wellness Program for Getting Pregnant and Having Healthy Babies
by Randine Lewis

-- Infertility affects one out of six couples today.

Dr. Lewis presents a groundbreaking alternative approach to infertility, explaining how she used traditional Chinese medicine to treat her own infertility, successfully conceiving and giving birth to two children.

In Lewis's experience, women who have undergone three to six of the of the dietary changes, herbs and acupuncture treatments become pregnant with no further effort.

Lewis intersperses her somewhat technical examination of the program with anecdotes about her patients, weaving in discussions on diet, herbal supplements, acupuncture, older women and problems related to infertility.

Paperback: 320 pages
Click to order/for more info: The Infertility Cure

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A tiny, six-legged critter that suspends all biological activity when the going gets tough may hold answers to a better way to cryopreserve human eggs, researchers say.

Tardigrades, also called water bears, can survive Himalayan heights or ocean depths as long as they have moisture.

When they don't, they produce a sugar, trehalose, slowly dehydrate and essentially cease functioning until the rain comes, says Dr. Ali Eroglu, reproductive biologist and cryobiologist at the Medical College of Georgia.

Tardigrades are not alone in their amazing ability to outlast adverse conditions. A type of brine shrimp, often called a sea monkey, comes back to life with water.

The Baker's yeast Dr. Eroglu uses when he bakes bread with his children does as well. Similarly, arctic wood frogs use the sugar, glucose, to tolerate frigid temperatures until the summer thaw.

While humans don't naturally produce trehalose, researchers think they can use it to safely preserve human eggs – and those of endangered species – giving better options to young women facing cancer therapies that may leave them infertile and others who simply want to delay reproduction.

Our hypothesis is when we introduce sugars into cells and into oocytes, we can protect them against freezing-associated stresses, says Dr. Eroglu, who received a $1.2 million grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to continue pursuing his hypothesis. We also hypothesized if we used trehalose, we also could use conventional cryoprotectants, which can be toxic, in lower concentrations to minimize their toxicity while maximizing overall protection.

Pilot data show it works like a charm, at least in mouse eggs. Researchers injected eggs with trehalose, cooled them to liquid nitrogen temperature, thawed them and exposed them to sperm. They got healthy babies at a similar rate to unfrozen controls.

We were very excited, says Dr. Eroglu, whose work has prompted desperate calls from young cancer patients wanting to preserve their eggs. We got very good development rates, then we transferred the embryos to foster mothers and got pups that were completely healthy. In fact, those pups had healthy pups. His limited testing in human eggs indicates they also can be preserved and thawed safely using this approach, however further research is needed to pursue clinical applications.

The NIH grant enables him to use monkey eggs, which are similar to human eggs, to find the optimal mix of sugar, conventional cryoprotectants and freezing to maximize egg preservation. Collaborators at Emory University are providing the eggs and at the Georgia Institute of Technology are developing a mathematical model to predict cooling rates while avoiding destructive intracellular ice formation. Dr. Eroglu also is working with the MCG Section of Reproductive Endocrinology, Infertility and Genetics In vitro Fertilization Program to obtain discarded eggs that failed to fertilize.

Dr. Eroglu looks for a better way because current approaches are fraught with problems. Scientists have been freezing human eggs for about two decades but not very successfully. Embryo cryopreservation is relatively successful, but to freeze oocytes, we have to overcome many hurdles, he says. A major problem is the protective, exterior jelly coat of an egg doesn’t freeze well. The jelly coat protects the egg from mechanical stress and serves as a receptor for sperm. Sperm must pass through the coat then penetrate the interior plasma membrane. As soon as a single sperm penetrates, it triggers intracellular signaling that transforms the coat into a hard, impermeable structure and with good reason: if multiple sperms penetrate, chromosomal abnormalities result. Interestingly, traditional freezing, even with cryopreservatives, can cause these problems and more. The jelly coat hardens, making it impossible for sperm to get through the traditional way. You don’t have this issue with an embryo because fertilization already has occurred, Dr. Eroglu says.

Intracytoplasmic sperm injection came into use in 1997 to help overcome the hardened jelly coat but other problems persist. Chemical stress, freezing or warming can disrupt the egg's mechanism for dividing chromosomes – babies get half their chromosomes from mom and half from dad – so they don't line up as they should. In addition to hardening the jelly coat, cold stress can change intracellular signaling resulting from sperm penetration. Lipids or fats in the egg can fuse and the membrane can become leaky.

The bottom line is only about 1-5 percent of eggs develop to term after standard cryopreservation techniques, which include a combination of slow freezing in conjunction with low levels of cryoprotectants such as dimethyl sulfoxide, or rapid freezing with more cryoprotectants.

Dr. Eroglu says the sugars, which help protect the natural structure of proteins, enable the use of warmer temperatures and fewer cryoprotectants. He uses the tried and true intracytoplasmic sperm injection approach to deliver sugar – instead of sperm - to eggs before cooling. One of his ultimate goals is to design sugars that can easily penetrate the egg’s membrane, but at least for now, tardigrade sugars seems to work just fine in mice.

One of his many hopes is that freezing embryos won't always be necessary, whether it's a human or an endangered species. Rather, eggs and sperm – which have been frozen successfully for decades – can be kept apart until fertilization is desirable. This could preclude the controversy of destroying unused embryos and perhaps the debate over embryonic stem cells, he says.

Eggs, which can reprogram cell function by turning genes off and on, can produce cells that can become essentially anything, Dr. Eroglu says. If he can better understand how they do this, regular body cells might be reprogrammed in a test tube to embryonic-like stem cells for therapeutic use.

Source: Durable Critters Providing Insight For Human Egg Preservation

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
You Can Get Pregnant Over 40, Naturally II: Overcoming infertility and recurrent loss in your late 30s and 40s naturally
by Sandy Robertson

-- After years of infertility and failed fertility treatments, Sandy Robertson developed an all-natural pregnancy protocol leading to the birth of her daughter at the age of 44.

In this new expanded edition, she shares her research including over 100 references.

She explains how she:
- Overcame recurrent miscarriage
- Conceived multiple times of the age of 40 with one Fallopian tube
- Balanced hormones
- Increased pelvic circulation

Paperback: 248 pages
Click to order/for more info: You Can Get Pregnant Over 40, Naturally

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Can someone ever be too old to be a parent? 

Several recent cases involving older single women having children have helped bring this issue into the spotlight and make it a topic of national debate.

At first glance, the question appears pretty straightforward — but it isn't.

In order to answer it there must be an agreement both on what would make a potential parent too old, and who would enforce rules that limit access to reproductive technologies based on age.

The case of the world's oldest mom
Assistance in knowing how old is too old has now been provided by a Romanian woman named Adriana Iliescu.

The 66-year-old unmarried professor and writer gave birth by emergency Caesarean section to a baby girl on Jan. 17 at the Giulesti Maternity Hospital in Bucharest.

She is now the oldest woman in the world ever to give birth.

Her doctor, when asked why he would use reproductive technology to permit a 66-year-old woman to become pregnant, said he helped her because that is what she wanted to do, and because he was impressed with her faith in God and with her determination.

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
Pregnancy Miracle
by Lisa Olsen

-- A 279-page, instantly downloadable e-book presenting a 5-step, sure-fire, 100% guaranteed, clinically proven holistic and ancient Chinese system for permanently reversing your infertility and your partner's infertility disorders and getting pregnant quickly, naturally and safely within 2-4 months without drugs, dangerous surgeries, side effects, or expensive infertility treatments.

It's probably the most powerful infertility reversal system ever developed, and currently the best-selling e-book of its kind on the entire Web!

Here's what the author Lisa Olson had to say about her incredible program:
After 14 years of trial, error, and experimentation, I finally discovered the answer to infertility and developed a fool-proof system to getting pregnant the natural way - no drugs, or surgery necessary.

It took a lot of research to get to where I am today, to know exactly what works and what doesn't. Yes, after desperate trial and error, countless of useless treatments, disappointments, and agony, a simple holistic system opened the door to my new and much brighter life of motherhood.

I was also excited to see that my other infertility related symptoms had diminished. After years of waiting, I was finally free from Infertility! I have become a proud mother of two.

And now I'm finally revealing my secrets in this new 'encyclopedia' of pregnancy called, Pregnancy Miracle.

I will be your own personal coach, take you by the hand, and lead you through the lousy advice, hype and gimmicks... and directly to the sort of inner balance perfection that will end your battle with infertility forever and help you become a proud mother of your healthy children.


Click to order/for more info on this helpful program:
Pregnancy Miracle

Onset of capacity for childbearing in women is dated biologically by menarche, although actual onset may be delayed.

The end of childbearing is less understood but recent demographic and biological research on fertility at older ages in clarifying the end of fertility.

The demographic view of declining fertility with age is based on age-specific fertility in natural fertility populations, artificial insemination and pregnancy rates by age and World Fertility Survey data.

New data from the Demographic and Health Surveys on exposure to the risk of pregnancy shows that whereas older women biologically need longer exposure to pregnancy, exposure declines on behavioral grounds such as duration of marriage. Actual fecundity is obscured by factors of fecundability.

Recent research on medically assisted conception is adding to the understanding of declining fecundity with age, especially the relative contributions of endometrial and ovarian ageing. This paper reviews the available information on declining fertility with age and discusses the implications of the extension of fertility through new medical technologies.

PIP: This literature review on fecundity and age interactions discusses studies on menopause, on artificial insemination, on sexual behavior, and on assisted reproductive technology<. Challenges to the age old notion of biological reproductive declines with age have appeared since the advent of new technologies and the understanding of reproductive potential.

With donated oocytes, acyclic women can have a higher probability of conception than young women conceiving naturally. The beginning of childbearing is easily demarcated with the advent of menstrual cycles and fecundity with first ovulation. There are societal constraints on fecundity. Fixing a date on the end of childbearing is not as clear cut.

An understanding of the limits of childbearing comes from research on cessation of ovarian follicular function, on natural childbearing populations and ages of women at their last birth, and on achieved pregnancy among women artificially inseminated. The end of menopause tends to occur during the mid-50s, but natural population data indicate that fecundity usually ends at around 39-41 years.

The gap between fecundity and menopause is determined to be about 8-10 years. Findings from the artificial insemination literature indicate conception rates decline for women older than 30 years. Van Noord-Zaadastra finds that conceptions among women aged 31 years and older are 66% of those for women aged 21-30 years, after 12 cycles of insemination.

Young women conceive in about 90% of cases in 24 cycles. Comparisons with natural fertility indicate that use of fresh sperm increases pregnancy rates in cases of insemination. Sex behavior surveys find that coital frequency declines with age, which reduces the risk of pregnancy.

Coital frequency is also related to marriage duration; studies reveal women married for 30 or more years have half the coital frequency rate of women married for four years or less. Reports of intercourse within the past month show a decline by age. Coital frequency and acceptance of extramarital relations have been found to be culture-dependent.

Kerin at al. show oocyte production and fertilization rates decline with age. The quality of the uterus also declines with age. Navot et al. find a high pregnancy rate in women aged 40 years and older when oocytes are donated.

Related Links
-- Reproductive potential in the older woman [Fertil Steril. 1986]

-- Fecundity and natural fertility in humans [Oxf Rev Reprod Biol. 1989]

-- Fertility in older women [IPPF Med Bull. 1984]

-- Age and infertility in a micronesian atoll population [Hum Biol. 1993]

-- Delaying childbearing: effect of age on fecundity and outcome of pregnancy [BMJ. 1991]

Source: The end of fertility: age, fecundity and fecundability in women

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TODAY'S BOOK SUGGESTION:
40 and Pregnant!: What to expect when you are having your first child and are at (or near) the age of 40
by Dena Kennedy

-- This is a book for women who are at or near the age of 40 and pregnant for the first time.

This book explains many things that happen to a woman, her body and her mind when having children later in life.

It is also helpful to anyone who is pregnant or just recently had a baby.

About the Author: I am a mother of two and a full time legal secretary for a high profile law firm. Trying to juggle family life and a career at the same time can be difficult.

I would like to share with you what to expect when you are ... 40 and Pregnant!

Paperback: 138 pages
Click to order/for more info: 40 and Pregnant!


Start reading 40 and Pregnant! on your Kindle in under a minute!

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

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