The Office for National Statistics have revealed a new trend in their figures which shows that women over 40 are now most likely to lose a baby in its first year of life.

The change could be due to the improvement in support for teenage mothers, and the increase in older mothers who have a higher risk of giving birth to babies with severe congenital problems.  In 2008, mothers under 20 years old had the highest chance of losing a baby before the child’s first birthday.  Between 2008 and 2010 the lowest rate of infant mortality was in mothers aged 30 to 34 years.  Neena Modi, professor of neonatal medicine at Imperial College London, said the rise in infant mortality amongst 40 plus mothers since 2008 was probably within the realm of normal statistical variability, although she did feel the drop in the rate within the teenage mother was significant.