How much do you have to wait between one pregnancy and another

Women must wait a year or more enter births researchers report, reducing the risks to their health and that of their babies.

"Our study has highlighted an increased risk for the mother and the child when pregnancies they have occurred very closely, even among women over 35, "said lead author Laura Schummers, a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of British Columbia (UBC).

"The results are particularly important for older women because they tend to have more frequent pregnancies and often do so intentionally," Schummers said in a university press release.

Researchers analyzed data from over 148,000 pregnancies in the Canadian province of British Columbia, and concluded that between 12 and 18 months was the ideal time between childbirth and the new pregnancy.

Women over 35 who became pregnant six months after a previous birth were at risk of serious complications or 1.2% death. The risk was only 0.5% among those who had waited 18 months before falling pregnant again.

Among these older women, the risk of premature delivery was about 6% among those who became pregnant within six months after delivery. This risk was reduced to 3.4% among those who waited 18 months before starting a new the pregnancy.

Among the youngest women, aged 20 to 34, the risk of preterm birth was 8.5% among those who became pregnant again within six months. In comparison, the risk was 3.7% among those who waited 18 months before falling back pregnant.

The findings, published in the Oct. 29 issue of the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, offer advice to older women planning their families, said lead author of the study, Dr. Wendy Norman, associate professor in the Department of Medicine. convenient. from the UBC family.

"Older mothers have excellent evidence for the first time to steer on the waiting time between two children," Norman said. "Achieving the optimal interval of one year should be achievable for many women, and it is really worthwhile to reduce the risk of complications."