Birth Spacing
  • If you are interested in having more than one baby, it is recommended that each woman wait at least eighteen months between pregnancies.  It is also recommended that each woman have another baby within five years of your last pregnancy.
  • These recommendations have been made, because evidence suggests that women who have another baby before eighteen months or after five years are at a much greater risk for preterm labor and for having a low birth weight infant.
  • There also seems to be a connection between having another pregnancy within six months of the last pregnancy and higher rates of neural tube defects.  Therefore, waiting to have a second child until after eighteen months may reduce the chance of your child being born with anencephaly or spina bifida.  For more information on neural tube defects, visit the Folic Acid section of the website.
  • It has been suggested that proper birth spacing could reduce infant deaths in the United States and worldwide dramatically.

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Disclaimer:  This information is meant for educational purposes only and cannot replace medical advice.  Contact your doctor about any concerns you have.