Being a mother is an incredible feat in any situation, but for some mothers, it’s almost a miracle.
We introduce some of the world’s most extreme mothers, from the youngest mother in the world to the oldest mother in the world, and from the most pregnancies to the most babies born in a single pregnancy.
Most births in one pregnancy
Nadia Suleman, better known as “Octomom,” rose to global fame when she gave birth to eight babies in January 2009. The American single mother was 33 years old when she gave birth to the only octuplets to survive beyond the first week of life, USA Today previously reported.
Suleman, who already had six children before giving birth to the octuplets, had conceived all of her children, including the first six, through IVF, sparking controversy over the technique, and the California Medical Board later revoked the medical license of a doctor who performed the procedure.
Nadia Suleiman gave birth to octuplets in 2009. Source: Getty.
The most prolific mother
According to the Guinness World Records, the most children ever born to a woman is 69. The mother was a peasant from Shuya, Russia, identified only as the wife of Fyodor Vasiliev.
According to the 1998 Guinness World Records (Bantam Books), Madame Vasilieva lived in the 18th century and experienced 27 pregnancies, including 16 sets of twins, seven sets of triplets, and four sets of quadruplets.
The youngest mother
According to the magazine La Presse Medical, the youngest person to ever give birth was a Peruvian girl named Lina Medina, who gave birth in May 1939 at the age of five years, seven months and 21 days.
Doctors initially thought Medina’s abdominal swelling was due to a tumor, but later discovered she was seven months pregnant. Medina gave birth to a baby boy via Caesarean section due to her small pelvis.
According to reports, Medina began menstruating at eight months old, but other reports say she was earlier. According to Snopes.com, Medina’s father was initially jailed on incest charges, but was released due to a lack of evidence to prove his guilt, and the identity of Medina’s child’s father was never discovered.
The oldest mother
The oldest woman to give birth was Omkari Panwar of India, who gave birth to twins at age 72 in June 2008. According to ABC News, she conceived the twins, a boy and a girl, through IVF and gave birth via Caesarean section.
Panwar and her 75-year-old husband already have two children and five grandchildren.
The first “pregnant man”
Thomas Beatty, a transgender man from Oregon, became the first man in the world to become pregnant and give birth in 2008.
Beatty, a speaker, author and advocate for transgender and sexuality issues, was born female and has had reconstructive breast surgery (but not sterilization) and testosterone therapy.
After his wife, Nancy, had a hysterectomy and was unable to have children, Beatty decided to have children through artificial insemination with a sperm donor. Beatty has given birth to three children in total, according to his website.
Thomas Beatty, a transgender man, gave birth in 2008. Source: Getty.
The smallest mother
Stacey Herald, who is just 2ft 4ins (71cm) tall, gave birth to three babies despite doctors warning her the pregnancies could be life-threatening.
Herald, from Dry Ridge, Kentucky, has osteogenesis imperfecta, a genetic disorder that makes bones weak and more likely to break.
Doctors have recommended that Herald not have children because her pelvis is too small and a growing fetus could put pressure on her internal organs, ABC News previously reported.
Her oldest and youngest children also have bone disease, but her middle child is of average height.
Breaking News – May 11th