The longer adults put off starting a family, the greater a child's risk of Down syndrome, schizophrenia and autism, new research suggests

Today's adults 'going against the trend of having children early' 16 Mar 2009
The longer adults put off starting a family, the greater a child's risk of Down syndrome, schizophrenia and autism, new research suggests. In response to recent findings linking paternal age to impaired neurocognitive outcomes in childhood, experts have highlighted that leaving parenthood until later in life increases the likelihood of a range of disorders in infancy. The study, published in the journal PLoS Medicine, linked advanced paternal age with an increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and schizophrenia, as well as dyslexia and reduced intelligence. Dr Allan Pacey, senior lecturer in andrology at the University of Sheffield, said: "[It is] another piece of evidence which might suggest that men should have their children earlier than we perhaps are doing these days."Nature intended us to have our children early and we are going against that trend." "By the time a man is in his 40s, the cells producing sperm have done over 800 cycles producing sperm and they are getting a bit tired by then," Dr Pacey explained. According to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics, around half of childless women in their 30s who intended to start a family managed to do so in the subsequent six years.Discuss this item in our forums