Mothers in their 50s 'cope as well as young women'

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Although older women are at greater risk of medical complications, a study found they were no more likely to be physically or emotionally stressed than younger mothers.

The research will reignite the debate about the ethics of postmenopausal women using donor eggs to have children - and the growing trend for young women to freeze their own eggs for the future.

Researchers told the American Society for Reproductive Medicine conference in New Orleans that there was growing evidence to support women having children later.

Dr Anne Steiner, who headed the study at the University of Southern California, said it was inevitable that more women would delay childbearing.

"In the absence of other data, maybe we shouldn't jump to the conclusion that it's wrong for women to become mothers at this age," she said.

Her team questioned 150 women who had babies after fertility treatment between 1992 and 2004.

It found the physical or mental functioning of older mothers was similar to that of the younger women, and they did not suffer from greater parenting stress.

More than 22,000 women over 40 gave birth last year, including around 900 aged over 45. In 1995 there were only 11,000 new mothers in their 40s.

Patti Farrant became Britain's oldest mother in July after giving birth to a boy at 62.

While there is no absolute age limit for IVF in Britain, the Health Service will not fund treatment for women aged over 40 and many clinics are reluctant to help women in their fifties.

Dr Gillian Lockwood, medical director of Midland Fertility Services, is a strong supporter of egg freezing.

She said: "I don't agree with the view that men may father a child into their eighties but it's wrong for women to want to extend their fertility after 45 - that's ageist and sexist."

But Josephine Quintavalle, of Comment on Reproductive Ethics, said: "Egg freezing has a place for women with life-threatening conditions such as cancer to give them a chance of motherhood later on - it should not be a lifestyle choice."