Robert De Niro, Al Pacino embrace fatherhood once extra: How fair is it to the child?

These two joined the previous daddies membership of Hollywood, becoming a member of colleagues Richard Gere, Mick Jagger and Paul McCartney and others together with Eddie Murphy, Alec Baldwin and Hugh Hefner.

Stating that this is not a brand new idea, Mumbai-based psychologist Pragya says it’s solely as a result of these are large names and common that the debate has sparked off.

“We have seen parents and kids who have huge age gaps. And yes, the instability is there. Emotionally it is difficult because the generation gap is high. In such cases, it is important to educate the kid about the realities of life,” she says, elaborating, “By having conversations around death, emotional independence and financial inheritance. These conversations need to happen with or without the support of a psychologist. The way they bring up the kid needs to happen in a different way, and not regular parenting.”

According to a examine again in 2015, printed in the journal Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, said that there are “disturbing links between increased paternal age and rising disorders in their offspring”. Another examine printed in the journal BMJ identified that youngsters of males aged 45-54 are 14 per cent extra vulnerable to untimely start and low start weight, as in contrast to the progeny of fathers in the 25-34 age group.

Opening up about the similar, physician Saurabh Khanna, Lead Consultant, Neonatology and Pediatrics , CK Birla Hospital, Gurgaon, mentions, “In such case if the father is not that healthy to take care of the baby, the baby misses that paternal touch and not having father around can lead to certain social and developmental issues.”

When it comes to the aged individuals, psychotherapist Divya Singh says there is plenty of a stereotype hooked up to the age group.

“When it comes to choosing to become a parent at 70+ age is concerned, it’s purely the individual’s choice and should be respected. Parenthood at any age comes with its set of struggles and satisfaction. A child post retirement age, especially of a successful individual, can guarantee better social security, more experience in raising a child and better emotional frame of a parent,” she continues, “Whereas, on the other hand it may also mean feeling physically more enervated , and the most important downside is the number of years the child will get with his elderly father. But one needs to believe in living and letting live.”

Psychologist Harish Shetty concurs, and calls it a matter of selection. “It also depends on one’s background and social status. One needs to understand that Al Pacino’s partner is young and it requires at least one healthy parent to raise a child. In such events one cannot make a general rule. The feasibility of having a child at old age depends upon case to case understanding,” he says.