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NHS fertility doctor says women 'should start trying by 30' as problems can take years to resolve

'If a woman starts trying at 35, doctors have got to sort it out when she is already on a slippery fertility slope'

Louis Dore
Sunday 31 May 2015 12:29 BST
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An NHS fertility doctor has called on the Education Secretary to include fertility lessons in the national curriculum and for women to start trying for a baby before they are 30.

Dr Geeta Nargund, a consultant gynaecologist at St George’s Hospital in London, advised that women should begin trying for a baby before they are 30, as problems with pregnancy usually take 5 years to resolve.

Professor Allan Pacey, the outgoing chair of the British Fertility Society agreed with this view: "You need to be trying by 30 because if there is a problem and you need surgery, hormones or IVF, then you’ve got five years to sort it out," he said.

"If a woman starts trying at 35, doctors have got to sort it out when she is already on a slippery fertility slope."

Dr Nargund said: "Ideally, if a woman is ready for a child, she should start trying by the time she is 30. She should consider having a child early because as a woman gets older, her fertility declines sharply."

She also called on Nicky Morgan, the Education Secretary, to include fertility lessons in the national curriculum.

Dr Nargund said teaching young women about the dangers of delaying parenthood would "empower people to take control of their fertility."

"Information is power and the best way to empower people to take control of their fertility is through education.

"Educated women are not necessarily educated about their fertility," she added.

The British Pregnancy advisory service tweeted: "Have a baby by the time your thirty or else" messaging is neither helpful to women nor based in scientific evidence re: age & fertility."

Dr Nargund, 55, started a family with her husband at the age of 29, while working as a junior doctor, the Mail on Sunday reported.

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