Conversations about fertility usually take place when there's a problem. They focus on treatment, rather than prevention. But with one in seven couples having difficulty conceiving, effective education could help to stop those numbers from rising.
As we live longer, have children later, and often build our careers before settling down - we're facing a fertility time-bomb in Britain. Having children in our late 30s and 40s is not always straightforward, and both age and lifestyle choices can have an incredible impact on our ability to conceive. Yet, even though we are aware of this, the widespread disconnect between social and biological reality means that the extent of such impacts isn't always known.
So how do we tackle the misconceptions around fertility? For me the solution is clear, and that is encouraging the next generation to be as informed and educated as possible on this subject.
I know this is both a sensitive and emotive issue, and I am aware of the argument that most young people are already aware of their biological clock, and that adding to this pressure is damaging. Yet it is my opinion that such a view is short-sighted. By providing reliable medical facts we are looking to remove fear and anxiety, rather than create it. It is a simple fact that we cannot turn back the biological clock once it is too late, and we should be giving young people the information they need to make informed decisions about their lifestyle and future.
We need to be informing teenagers and young men and women of the possible effects of their lifestyle choices. There isn't enough awareness about the impact low or high body weight, smoking, alcohol, drugs, STIs and thyroid problems can have on fertility.
We have already been successful in reducing teenage pregnancy through Sex and Relationship Education (SRE). Contraception and conception are two sides of the same coin. Last year I wrote a letter to Nicky Morgan MP, calling for the government to include fertility education as part of SRE in the secondary school curriculum. I am working with South London Schools to develop a pilot scheme in which secondary school children are provided with clear information as part of SRE on both the male and female fertility timeline and the effects of lifestyle.
At the most basic level, young men and women need to understand the fundamental facts about their fertility. A harsh biological reality is that female fertility declines much faster than that of men, decreasing significantly from the age of 35. Women are born with a finite number of eggs, and the decline in fertility comes from a reduction in the number and quality of eggs as women age. This decline can be measured by testing to indicate how many active egg sacs a woman still has. Sperm quantity and quality also decline with age - but at a much more gradual rate.
When it comes to reproductive ageing, nature has created a 'gender inequality'. Family history of early menopause also plays a part, and I encourage young women to speak to their mothers and female relatives openly. Education is crucial to ensuring that women who wish to have children don't miss out on the chance of motherhood due to misinformation.
Without effective education, the number of people facing fertility problems is only set to rise. But by passing on accurate and responsible information we can empower informed adult decisions. We need to shift the fertility paradigm from treatment to prevention - education can help us do this.
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Guest post: "Young adults need to understand the facts about fertility"
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MumsnetGuestPosts · 14/04/2016 10:13
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