Al Pacino and Robert De Niro are among a pool of A-listers in the old dad club, both having had children at the age of 83 and 79, respectively.
Now, one octogenarian considering doing the same, has asked about the health implications about fathering a child later in life.
Looking for advice anonymously, the 80-year-old wrote to Dr Keith Roach who runs a weekly health-focused column The Oregonian.
He explained he is ‘reasonably healthy’ for his age but is ‘concerned about any potential problems with my old genes and any birth defects that might be caused by them.’
He notes that his partner, who is of child bearing-age (typically considered to be between 15 and45 years old), wants for them to have a child but they wanted to get a medical opinion before proceeding.
In his response, Dr Roach says he frequently gets this question from his patients, ‘but usually when they are in their 60s or 70s [and] 80 is quite old to be considering fathering a child.’
Firstly the physician, who is based at Weill Cornell Medical College and New York Presbyterian Hospital, highlights how it isn’t just women who have a biological clock – fertility rates also decline as a man ages, and the risks increase.
Studies have shown conception is 30 percent less likely for men older than 40 and topping it off, the risk of genetic mutations is higher, with conditions such as down syndrome, autism and childhood cancer more prevalent among children with older fathers.
A 2000 study found conception is 30 percent less likely for men older than 40 than it is for men younger than 30
Dr Leen Alhafez and Dr Heather Fisher, who are both fertility experts at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Texas, say there are several reasons for decreased fertility, including that ‘semen volume, total sperm count, and sperm motility (how well the sperm can move toward the egg) all decrease as men age.’
Age-related contributing factors to these changes range from shrinking or softening of the testicles to declining levels of the male sex hormone testosterone.
A 2001 study revealed men over the age of 60 had 20 percent lower testosterone levels, men over the age of 70 had 33 percent lower testosterone levels, and men over the age of 80 had 50 percent lower testosterone levels.
Dr Roach said in his column that a difference in a man’s fertility is ‘apparent by the age of 35’ but for potential fathers in their 80s, there is not enough extensive data or research.
Next up, he says if the reader and his partner are able to conceive successfully, there is then the ‘increased risk of deleterious genetic conditions and birth defects that are more likely in children who have older fathers.’
Dr Alhafez and Dr Fisher, explain that while a woman is born with ‘all the eggs she’ll ever have,’ a man is ‘constantly making new sperm cells that divide and replicate about every 16 days.’
By age 20, they note a man’s sperm cells have gone through about 150 divisions and this number could grow to 800 by the time he is 50.
Because of these divisions, there is an increased risk of various genetic mutations.
Dr Roach says some of the conditions associated with advanced paternal age include down syndrome, epilepsy, schizophrenia, autism spectrum disorders and some heart conditions.
Al Pacino and Robert De Niro are among a pool of A-listers in the old dad club, both having had children at the age of 83 and 79 respectively
Research has also shown a connection between advanced paternal age and several childhood cancers, such as leukemia and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
However, Dr Alhafez and Dr Fisher note ‘these diseases are multifactorial, which means they are caused by a complex combination of genetic and non-genetic factors, including environmental and lifestyle factors.’
Genetic conditions aside, all of the doctors point to research that has shown babies born to men older than 45 are more likely to have a low birth weight, be born premature, and require care in the neonatal intenisve care unit.
However, Dr Roach says the ‘magnitude of the effect is modest.’
He adds: ‘On average, 1 in 50 pregnancies with a father under the age of 30 will have one of the common health conditions that are studied in couples. With children who have a father over 50, the rate is 1 in 38.’
Another issue Dr Roach asks the reader to consider is whether he will be around to see his child grow up and be there as a father.
Putting things into perspective, he writes: ‘The average 80-year-old man has a life expectancy of just under eight years.
‘If you are substantially healthier than average, or if your parents lived a very long time, this number could be a bit better.
‘But the average 80-year-old (assuming your partner has the child while you are still 80) is not likely to see their child reach their 10th birthday. The early death of a father has a negative impact on the physical and mental health of a child.’
Taking all of these factors into account, the physician concludes there are ‘significant risks’ for the octogenarian to bring a child into the world.
