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Vienna Yearbook of Population Research 2026Special issue: Delayed reproduction
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Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften Austrian Academy of Sciences Press
A-1011 Wien, Dr. Ignaz Seipel-Platz 2
Tel. +43-1-515 81/DW 3420, Fax +43-1-515 81/DW 3400 https://verlag.oeaw.ac.at, e-mail: verlag@oeaw.ac.at |
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DATUM, UNTERSCHRIFT / DATE, SIGNATURE
BANK AUSTRIA CREDITANSTALT, WIEN (IBAN AT04 1100 0006 2280 0100, BIC BKAUATWW), DEUTSCHE BANK MÜNCHEN (IBAN DE16 7007 0024 0238 8270 00, BIC DEUTDEDBMUC)
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Vienna Yearbook of Population Research 2026, pp. , 2026/04/01
Special issue: Delayed reproduction
Advanced maternal age has been linked to unfavourable birth outcomes, yet uncertainties regarding the generalisability of these associations remain. Socioeconomic resources protect perinatal health, which raises the question of potential mitigation of
age effects. Using register data from the Spanish Birth Statistics (2007–2021), this study explores how a wide range of adverse perinatal outcomes relate to mothers’ age and education and their interaction. Statistically significant (p < 0.05) incremental effects of maternal age on most outcomes are observed. Maternal university-level education and, to a lesser extent, medium-level education play a protective role translating into a lower baseline probability of most events already at ages 25 to 29, and, generally, into lower figures across the age distribution. Nevertheless, effects are frequently small and sometimes restricted to specific combinations of education and age, which suggests that the perinatal health impact of
maternal ageing should not be underplayed even among more advantaged population strata.
Keywords: Perinatal health; Late childbearing; Maternal education; Maternal age