“Fertility is not infinite, kids should learn it at school”, the proposal

“Fertility is not infinite. And kids have to learn it already in high school.” This is the suggestion that comes from Filippo Maria Ubaldi, president of the Italian Society of Fertility and Sterility-Reproductive Medicine (Sifes-Mr). The expert, on the occasion of the congress of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (Eshre), taking place in Milan until Wednesday 6 July, talks about the importance of a sort of fertility education to start already at school. That is, before the ideal time comes from a ‘biological’ point of view to evaluate the choice of having children. “Both boys and girls must be explained everything: how and when to have a child, when it is better to conceive it, what can be the remedies if, in what would be the right phase of life, you do not want to have children, for for example, the preservation of fertility. After that it is up to the boy and the girl to make an informed decision “, highlights Adnkronos Salute. “Up to now, however – analyzes Ubaldi – the decisions that have been taken have not been fully aware of these aspects. When I speak to a 42-year-old woman and I explain to her that it is difficult to have a child at this age, it happens that she is amazed. “. A role also has “the information that is sometimes conveyed by the media in a sensationalist way, exalting the cases of women aged 50-55” who give birth to a child. “This has an effect: the 40-year-old woman who may not yet have found the right partner or a favorable economic arrangement is convinced that she has another 12 years to have a child, not knowing that we stop medically assisted procreation with her own you ovulate at a very early age compared to 50 years “. Twenty years ago, observes the expert,” these issues were not really talked about. And now we need to affect the next generations of 18-25 year-olds, so that in 10-15 years have this awareness. The Italian society of fertility and sterility has launched an information campaign on this front, going to the beaches, squares, high schools. Even here, however, schools are not always open to this type of training activity. “a cultural question that must be addressed. These issues must be addressed before the age of 20. The information that must be given is precisely that fertility is not infinite. Above all, women have been” designed “to have children between 20 and 32 years. That is the age group in which the oocytes are of the best quality, according to published scientific data “. And this, continues Ubaldi,” is the best time to have children. Then the difficulties increase. And it is right that people know that, if you get to 40 years, the probability of not having children starts to become very high and there may be the risk that, if you want to become pregnant, you have to resort to egg donation. The main problem is in fact that, increasing age, the probability of finding eggs that are competent decreases, that is, that can give rise to an embryo that can in turn lead to a child “. At this point, the expert points out, “Once you have learned everything there is to know, the decision can be: I will have a child immediately, which would be the best and desirable thing. But to have a child immediately, social policies are needed to help me realize my project. Or I wait up to 40 years and risk, and if the child does not come I will resort to egg donation. Or, again, in that age group in which the eggs are better I preserve them, I put them aside. And then, in case I don’t get pregnant and I am forced to resort to assisted reproduction, I will be able to use my eggs. This is the message we must give “.