Zistboom:�The best age for women to get pregnant is 18 to 35 years, said a deputy health minister.
Ali Akbar Sayyari added that maternal age has increased in Iran, adding that various risks are associated with pregnancy in women of ages 35 years and above, Fars News Agency reported.

He noted that young Iranian couples expect to have their first child 3.5 years after their marriage, which creates a birth interval of 5 years between the first and second child.

"In fact, educated Iranian women give birth to only one child,� he said.

Sayyari noted that efforts should be made to encourage youths to get married and have the first child sooner.

Referring to the role played by the mass media, he said Iranian families, especially women, should be acquainted with risks associated with delayed pregnancy.

Sayyari also said 25 percent of Iranian couples are infertile, hence providing treatment solutions will help increase the population growth rate.

"The use of birth control methods, including tubectomy and vasectomy, did not reduce the fertility rate because only a small number used them in the country,� he said.

The deputy minister said the Health Ministry makes its best efforts to protect the health of pregnant women, prepare the grounds for them to have safe delivery and start feeding their babies earlier.

Sayyari noted that State Expediency Council is expected to ratify a number of policies to help the youth get married sooner and have children.

Adel Azar, the head of Iran Statistics Organization, said earlier that Iran�s population will reach 90 million in the next 20 years which, unfortunately, will not prevent a zero population growth.

"The country�s elderly population has increased by 10 percent,� he said, noting that in the next three years, the population of people above 65 years will be more than 10 percent of the total population, Mehr News Agency reported.

Azar said Iran would be ranked among old countries in the next 10 years, if the current trend were to continue.

By Zistboom�

 

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