Is 34 the magic number?

FRIENDS star Lisa Kudrow did it and she looks fighting fit. It was the making of former Catatonia singer Cerys Matthews. And Sophia Loren, well, who's going to argue with a screen legend?

All three had their first baby aged 34 - a wise decision, according to controversial new research.

Professor John Mirowsky of the University of Texas studied more than 2,200 women and found that waiting to start a family can be good for your health.

While women in their early 20s were more fertile and biologically fit, older mothers engaged in less risky behaviour and were more settled financially, educationally and emotionally.

The research, which was published in the Journal of Health and Social Behaviour, found that women who gave birth around puberty developed more health problems. These problems diminish the longer a women delays having her first child up to the age of 34. The health benefits start at 22, peak at 34 and fall rapidly after that.

Prof Mirowsky's study has come in for criticism in Britain, where the average age for a married woman to have her first baby is 30, compared to 25 in America.

Fertility experts here claim that women in their 20s conceive more easily and have fewer complications.

There is also the possibility that, by waiting, women might miss the boat altogether. Fertility begins to decline rapidly after 35, so hanging on until 34 can be a risk.

Ann O'Rourke of Browning Road, Pocklington, gave birth to Jack Oliver on January 31 this year. She was 34.

Ann's story...

"I didn't wait until now out of choice, but in some ways I'm glad I did. Jack is an IVF baby. I've always been maternal and would have liked a baby earlier, but I just knew it wasn't going to be as easy as that.

My husband (Jason) wanted to wait until he was 32 - I've no idea why - and in the end he wasn't far off. He was 33 when Jack was born.

I would have liked to have a baby at 30. But with hindsight I think that extra four years has given me valuable experience and maturity.

Because we are that little bit older I think we are calm and confident enough to let Jack go his own way.

I think I would have been more stressed if I was younger. You care too much what other people think when you're younger. I don't care what other people think; I'm confident in my own decisions.

Jason feels the same. He has been a doting dad and has been very confident with Jack from day one. I had to have an emergency caesarean, so Jason got half an hour of cuddles with him before I got my hands on him.

Now I don't get a look-in at weekends.

We've both always worked very hard. Jason's a van driver and I'm an NVQ assessor in the hospitality industry. Having our careers on track helped when we decided to have a baby. You need that financial security.

We met in 1998, and we knew within a year that we weren't going to be able to have a baby easily. We are so lucky to have Jack - and we can't wait to have another.

A lot of IVF couples don't need fertility treatment second time around because having their first baby has kick-started their system naturally.

We're going on holiday in September and if I'm not pregnant when we come back, we'll be back on IVF in the new year"

Ann is now preparing to go back to work part-time, at least until she gets pregnant again.

In the meantime, she has her hands full with Jack, a lively 12-week-old, who sleeps 12 hours a night, has just had his first taste of solid food and likes nothing more than widdling over his mum whenever she changes him.

"Oh, there he goes again," said Ann, as her son did his second fountain impression in ten minutes.

"The joys of motherhood, eh?"

Updated: 09:19 Tuesday, May 03, 2005