According to the Guiness Book of World records, what is the oldest age at which any woman has given birth to a child? margin of error of 2 years

While the idea of giving birth in one's late 50s might seem like a modern phenomenon, the record for a woman of this age giving birth was set decades ago. In 1956, Ruth Alice Kistler, at the age of 57, gave birth to a daughter in Glendale, California. This event was notable enough to be listed in the Guinness Book of World Records at the time. Given the technology available in the mid-1950s, this would have been a natural conception, making it a remarkable biological feat, especially for that era.

The landscape of childbirth for older women has changed dramatically since the mid-20th century. Today, with the advent of assisted reproductive technologies like in vitro fertilization (IVF), the age at which women can give birth has been pushed significantly higher. There have been numerous reports of women in their 60s and even 70s successfully delivering children, often through the use of donor eggs. For instance, in 2019, Erramatti Mangayamma in India gave birth to twins at the reported age of 74.

These medical advancements have sparked conversations and ethical debates about the implications of geriatric pregnancies. While cases like Kistler's in 1956 were rare and pushed the perceived limits of natural human reproduction, modern medicine has introduced a new frontier of possibilities and considerations for motherhood later in life. The Guinness World Records now recognizes different categories, with the oldest mother to conceive naturally being Dawn Brooke, who gave birth at 59 in 1997.