FREELANCE writer Jan Andersen was positively delighted when she found she was pregnant at the age of 39.

But this delight soon turned to horror when the Freshbrook mum found nothing but negative information on the internet.

Soon after the birth of daughter Lauren, Jan decided to set one up herself, called Mothers Over 40.

She said: "The lack of positive information amazed me.

"One in five women are now delaying starting a family until they are over 35.

"It seemed to be the magic age there was information for women over 35, but not over 40."

Jan was 40 when she gave birth to Lauren, now two-and-a-half.

She said: "As soon as you mention being an older mother, you hear things about Down's Syndrome, pre-eclampsia and chromosome abnormalities.

"But everything that I have read is that a healthy mother in her 40s is more likely to have a healthy baby than an unhealthy mother in her 20s."

Jan was 22 when she had her first child.

She now has four children Kristian, 20, Anneliese, 16, Carsten, 14, and the latest addition to the family, Lauren.

After meeting her current partner Mike, who is 12 years her junior, they decided to have a child.

She wrote about her experiences on her other website World Writer and received emails from budding older parents all over the world.

She said: "They were older mothers and fathers who were desperately seeking some kind of positive resource about starting a family.

"It is very easy to find negative statistics it frightens the hell out of women."

Jan hopes the website will provide a positive resource for older mothers.

She said: "They get hope, encouragement, comfort, and support from communicating with other mothers.

"Deep down I knew I was healthy but you can't help be influenced by what you read."

Although the site is non-profit, Jan is currently looking for sponsorship for it.

www.mothersover40.com/