Pregnancy at 30 to 34

Ages 30 to 34
YOUR BODY

Fertility begins to decline at age 30, but this change happens gradually, over the next five years or so. If you need infertility treatment, your chances of success are higher than they are for an older woman. For women under age 35 the success rate of in vitro fertilization (IVF), for example, is 25 to 28 percent; for those over age 40, that rate drops to 6 to 8 percent. One study found that the rate of cesarean sections was close to two times higher among women ages 30 to 34 than among those in their 20s, although doctors don't know why.

YOUR EMOTIONAL SELF

"Women who have been fully involved in their job in their 20s often feel emotionally ready to start a family as they enter their next decade," says Glazer. "And they have the energy and the resources to do it. But they may also feel pulled in different directions. They worry about whether they'll be able to return to their work life -- or whether they'll even want to."

RISKS TO YOUR BABY

The miscarriage rate is 11.7 percent. By age 30 your risk of having a baby with Down syndrome is 1 in 952, and a baby with any chromosomal abnormality, 1 in 385.