A Brazilian dancer turned TV star who gave birth at 56 has been forced to defend herself from online attacks over photos with her newborn son.
Claudia Raia says she has been suffering abuse on social media since she first revealed news of her unexpected pregnancy on Instagram.
The mum-of-three was shocked by the news - more than 20 years after her other two children were born - and doctors say a natural pregnancy at 55 is incredibly rare.
Claudia, from Sao Paulo, Brazil, who worked as a dancer in America before finding fame on Brazilian prime-time television in 1985, gave birth to a boy called Luca in February.
His father is her husband since 2018, actor Jarbas Homem de Mello.
But when Claudia posted an update online with a photo of her and Luca, she was horrified by the reaction from some cruel users.
One said, “Looking like boy’s grandma” while another wrote: “Is she the child’s grandmother or great-grandmother?”
Image:
claudiaraia/Instagram)Claudia hit back: “There are a thousand ways to be a mother. In my case, being 50 plus was one of the challenges, but it’s worth reflecting on that today there are a thousand family formats and so many other forms of maternal love.
“We need to stop this mania of judging or putting limits on other people’s maternity, because each person sees this experience in a very intimate and unique way.”
She has previously shared how women have been most critical of her pregnancy, and spoke on Brazilian TV about the backlash, begging people to "please have more empathy".
She also spoke of her shock at her unexpected news, saying: "When the doctor asked me for a beta, the pregnancy blood test, I said, 'Baby, you're really crazy. Where did you get this from? I'm 55 years old.’
“Then I took the test and it came back more than three weeks pregnant. I said, 'it can not be."
