Women with asthma take longer to start a family: New study of 15,000 twins reveals the risk of delay in conceiving is increased when condition goes untreated



Study suggests the condition's impact on conception is more serious the older the woman is

Those whose condition was controlled by treatment fared better than those not on medication

Trend towards greater fertility problems in older women linked with their bodies coping with systemic inflammation for longer



Women with asthma take longer to conceive, a new study of 15,000 twins has revealed (stock image)

Women with asthma take longer to start a family, researchers said yesterday.

A large-scale study suggests the condition’s impact on conception is more serious the older the woman is.

The explanation could be that the generalised inflammation of the body caused by asthma may make it hard for a fertilised egg to implant in the womb at the start of pregnancy.

Those whose condition was controlled by treatment fared better than those not on medication.

The researchers, from Bispebjerg University Hospital in Denmark, analysed questionnaires completed by 15,000 twins.

Of the 955 women who had asthma, 27 per cent took a ‘prolonged’ time to get pregnant, compared with 21 per cent of those who did not have asthma.



The risk of a delay in conceiving significantly increased in women with untreated asthma – rising to 30 per cent compared with 24 per cent of those receiving treatment.

The researchers found a trend toward greater fertility problems among older women, probably because they had been coping with systemic – whole body – inflammation for longer.

One in three women above the age of 30 had a long waiting time to pregnancy compared with one in four under the age of 30.

The overall results showed women with asthma ultimately gave birth to the same average number of children as women without it.



The large-scale study suggests the impact the condition has on conception becomes more serious the older the woman gets. The research found those whose condition was controlled by treatment fared better than those not on medication (stock image)

Elisabeth Juul Gade, lead author of the study published in the European Respiratory Journal, said: ‘Although we observed women with asthma experiencing longer waiting times to pregnancy, our findings suggest that if women take their medication and control their asthma, they can reduce this delay.

‘Our overall results suggest that women with asthma had the same number of children, which is due to the fact that they tend to conceive at an earlier age compared to those without, getting a head start on their reproductive life.’

Deborah Waddell of Asthma UK said: ‘Good asthma management is vital for the health of both mother and baby, and mums-to-be should continue to use their medication during pregnancy.