Babies of older fathers may be less healthy
A study says babies of older fathers may be more likely to have health problems. Scientists studied data on over 40 million births between 2007 and 2016. Compared to babies born to fathers aged 25 to 34, babies born to fathers over the age of 45 had more health problems. They said babies could be born prematurely, be underweight or spend time in an intensive care unit. Researchers said babies born to older fathers were less healthy. A doctor said more research was needed to prove that older fathers have less-healthy babies. The doctor said: "I think it's important to understand that the risks we are seeing are modest.…the risk may not change much." The doctors said governments need to be aware of these risks. He said: "There may be public health implications of men…waiting longer to conceive." He said: "While the oldest father ever is 96…the risk…may increase if fathers conceive later." |