Two Under Two: Kim Kardashian Will Welcome Baby #4 This Spring

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West are adding to their family. The couple will reportedly welcome baby number four in May via a surrogate. With an already full house after the birth of their daughter Chicago via surrogate last January as well as daughter North, 5, and 3-year-old son Saint, Kardashian and West will have their hands full with two babies under two years old.

Kardashian has been open with fans about her health struggles during pregnancy. While pregnant with daughter North, she suffered from pre-eclampsia and also had placenta accrete, which occurs when the placenta attaches too deeply in the uterine wall. When pregnant with Saint, the placenta accrete returned and her doctors advised her that future pregnancies could put her life in danger. That’s when the couple turned to a surrogate for the birth of Chicago.

For many parents, the spacing of siblings has a lot to do with finances, careers, and personal preferences. Of course, Mother Nature has a hand in the planning of siblings, too. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the average age gap between siblings in America is about two and a half years, but what is the ideal spacing between children? Many experts say it’s a mixture of science and what works best for your family.

From being able to use hand-me-downs a planning for more than one kid in college at a time, there is a lot to consider when a family is planning to add another sibling. While many experts agree that having children close together — such as under a year – can raise health risks for the mom, Kardashian won’t have to worry about those risks since a surrogate will give birth to their new baby. However, when it comes to the kids, the AAP says siblings that are close together may have more sibling rivalries. Gender may also have an influence on these battles between siblings. So if you have two girls or two boys, the fighting may increase.

For siblings spaced further apart, their bond may be more of a protector rather than a buddy. However, again, it’s mom who could feel the effects the most. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), women who waited 10 years between pregnancies experience double the risk of delivering prematurely and have a higher risk of miscarriage and birth defects. There is also a higher risk of postpartum depression returning the longer women wait to conceive.

So what’s the bottom line? Planning the spacing between your children is a personal decision and should be made based on what works best for your family.