The world has recorded some fathers in their 90s or over 100 years old, but doctors believe that giving birth at too old age poses some risks to the fetus.
On May 10, Robert De Niro announced that he had become a father at the age of 5. The Oscar-winning actor has not revealed his real name, the gender of his child as well as the identity of the child's mother. Although surprising for fans, Robert De Niro is not the oldest father ever recorded.
The average age of fatherhood in the UK is 33, in the US it is 30. However, the world has recorded men with children over the age of 90, even over 100.
James E. Smith, a novelist from Illinois, had a child when he was 102 years old in 1951. His wife, Anna Smith, was 38 years old then. Smith said he was born in 1849, but some documents indicate that he was born in 1864.
In 2012, Ramajit Raghav, a farmer near New Delhi in India, welcomed his second child at the age of 96, making his name in the Guinness Book of Records as the world's oldest father. Mr. Raghav previously set the record in November 11 when he welcomed his first child at the age of 2010.
Another man, Les Colley from Australia, has a 9th child with his third wife at the age of 92, also recognized by Guinness World Records as "the oldest father in the world".
According to Colley, he met his wife in 1991 through a dating agency when he was 90 years old. He lives a healthy, active life. Colley died in 1998 of pneumonia, just four months before turning 4.
Les Colley with her two-month-old son Oswald. Image: Les Colleys
In 2017, Israeli media reported that Mahmoud al-Adam became a father at the age of 92. This is the 13th child between him and his wife. According to Times of Israel, al-Adam is a deaf man who married Ms. Abeer after the death of his first wife.
Billionaire Bernie Ecclestone, Formula One car racing tycoon, has a fourth child at the age of 4 in 89. The billionaire's eldest child, Mrs. Deborah, is 2020 years old this year, is his child with his first wife. Ivy Bamford. He later had two more daughters, Tamara and Petra, with his second wife Slavica Radic.
According to experts, fatherhood at too old a age poses a number of risks. Like women's chances of conceiving, male fertility also declines with age. Before the age of 40, men's sperm quality is higher.
On average, it will take a couple about 5 months to get pregnant successfully if the father is younger than 40 years old. In advanced age, the period will last about two years.
After conceiving with an elderly man, the mother faces risks such as miscarriage, premature birth. The fetus is prone to birth defects and diseases. The risk of mental health problems and autism is also higher.
Research published in the British Medical Journal on 40,5 million births in the US shows that elderly fathers can cause babies to be underweight, increase the risk of seizures, and mothers are more likely to develop gestational diabetes.
Mr. Ramajit Raghav with his wife and 2 children. Image: India Today
Professor Suks Minhas, a consultant in urology and masculinity at the Lister Fertility Clinic, HCA Healthcare, says the most biologically appropriate age to become a father is around 20 to 30 years old. He said the older a man is, the more likely he is to damage the sperm's DNA, leading to genetic mutations and birth defects in children.
Lifestyle factors that can also compromise sperm quality include an unhealthy diet, smoking and vaping habits, alcohol consumption, drug use, and so on. fat.
“Smoking and vaping can reduce the quality and quantity of sperm and their ability to move through the reproductive tract to reach an egg. These habits can cause sperm not to swim straight, but to swim in circles - a factor leading to male infertility," Professor Minhas explained.
Thuc Linh (Follow Daily Mail)
