Repromedix®

Age and a woman's fertility

High profile celebrities having children in their 40's give the perception that our bodies have changed, that we can all have children later in life. But this is not always the case. While our lifestyles may have changed dramatically, our biological clocks have not. Every woman's ovarian reserve is unique. For some, the quality and quantity of eggs starts to diminish sooner than it does for others. There are many factors affecting a woman's fertility, such as illness, accidents, and smoking. Generally, by the age of 35 there are increasingly fewer eggs available for fertilization, and the eggs remaining are possibly of lower quality, making them less likely to become fertilized and develop into a healthy baby.

Declining egg number

Most women are born with about 2 million eggs in their ovaries. At puberty, almost 90% of these eggs have died. By age 20 only about 50,000 eggs remain. This decline usually continues steadily until around the age of 35, at which point the rate of loss speeds up dramatically. This means that there are increasingly fewer eggs available for fertilization as the average woman ages beyond 35.

Declining egg quality

Each month, your body “selects” at least one healthy egg to be passed during your period. So gradually, the best eggs are discarded by the body. Those that remain have grown older, and are possibly of lower quality, making them less likely to become fertilized and develop into a healthy baby.

The PlanAhead™ test assesses the quantity of eggs in a woman's ovaries. It does not measure their quality or your ability to conceive, which can be affected by multiple factors. Although the PlanAhead test uses the most up-to-date technology available in the market, before making any decisions based on the test results you should seek medical advice from your primary care physician, OB/GYN, or Reproductive Endocrinologist.