At the age of sixty, a Chinese woman gave birth to her second child within two years, in a rare case that sparked widespread interest in China and revived the discussion about motherhood at an advanced age.
The woman, known by her family name “Zhang”, gave birth to her baby girl on September 17 at Zhumadian Central Hospital in Henan Province, central China, by caesarean section, and the baby’s weight was 2.8 kilograms, according to local reports.
“I consider myself 28”
Zhang gave birth to a male child in May 2024, at the age of 58, so the child is now two years old, while he welcomed his new sister in the hospital by singing a famous children’s song.
The mother says that she is happy to have a son and a daughter, and she hopes that the two children will grow up together and be kind to each other. She also said that she does not feel like she is 60, adding: “In my opinion, I am only 28, and I believe that I will live a long time.”
From losing an only son to two new children
Zhang’s story carries a poignant personal background, as she lost her only son in an accident in 2022, before giving birth to another child at the age of 58, and then her second child two years later.
Her husband was initially hesitant about having a new pregnancy because of her age, but she said she was confident in her ability to do so. During her last pregnancy, she continued to prepare food and do housework, according to reports covering her story.
Zhang derives part of her confidence in her health from her family history. She says that her father lived until the age of 100, while her mother is 94 years old and, according to her description, is still in good health and can climb stairs on her own.
Extremely rare event
As for obstetrician and gynecologist Zhang Hua Lian, who followed up on her condition in the hospital, she said that pregnancy at this age is extremely rare, noting that Zhang seemed calmer during her second pregnancy compared to her first experience.
The first reports on Zhang’s story did not reveal details of how the pregnancy occurred, but a report published by the Liuzhou Evening News on the “The Paper” platform stated that her births at the ages of 58 and 60 took place using assisted reproductive techniques, without specifying the type of technique used.
How can you get pregnant at sixty?
Pregnancy at this age is possible, but extremely rare. With advancing age, fertility declines and the chances of natural pregnancy decrease significantly, while menopause usually occurs in the early fifties.
But menopause does not necessarily mean that the uterus loses its ability to carry a fetus, and therefore in some cases it is possible to resort to assisted reproductive techniques, including in vitro fertilization, with the possibility of using donor eggs or previously preserved embryos, depending on the case.
In Zhang’s case, there is no information available specifying the technique that was used. Also, the possibility of pregnancy occurring does not mean that its risks become similar to pregnancy at younger ages, as the chances of some complications of pregnancy and childbirth increase as the mother’s age increases, which makes such cases exceptional.
Other cases of mothers of advanced ages
Zhang was not the only Chinese woman whose story aroused interest due to giving birth at an advanced age.
Earlier in 2026, a 62-year-old woman from Jilin Province in northeastern China aroused widespread attention after she gave birth to a baby girl after the death of her only son. Her sister stated that she decided to go into pregnancy after losing her son, and that the pregnancy was achieved using in vitro fertilization.
The two cases are similar in terms of losing an only son and giving birth at an advanced age, but they differ in details. In the case of the 62-year-old woman, the method of pregnancy was documented as in vitro fertilization, while the source does not specify the type of assisted reproductive technology used with Zhang.
Outside China, German Alexandra Hildebrandt (66 years old) gave birth to her tenth child in March 2025 in Berlin. She said that she did not use fertility treatment, and that her pregnancy proceeded without major complications, according to media reports.
As for India, Iramati Mangayama (74 years old) gave birth to twin girls in 2019, after undergoing in vitro fertilization, in one of the most famous cases of birth at an advanced age.
These cases differ in the causes and methods of pregnancy and the health conditions of the mothers, but the common denominator between them is that childbirth after the age of sixty remains a rare event, even with the possibilities that assisted reproductive technologies have provided that were not previously available.