A Spanish actress who lost her firstborn three years ago has become a mum again aged 68.
Actress, television presenter, and socialite Ana Obregon took to Instagram on 30th March to post a magazine cover showing her holding her newborn.
She wrote: “They caught us! A light full of love came into my darkness. I will never be alone again. I have come back to life.
“#WelcomeToTheWorld. #DyingOfLove.”
Madrid-born Ana, who was once falsely rumoured to have had a liaison with football legend David Beckham, became a mother again through surrogacy in Florida, USA.
The actress lost her son, 27-year-old Alex Lequio, to Ewing sarcoma in 2020. Since then, she has been battling depression.
Her daughter was conceived in June last year, when Alex would have turned 30. The newborn is reported to be named Ana, like her mum.
Little Ana was born at Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood, near Miami, on 20th March.
Surrogacy is legal in the USA for both couples and single parents.
In general, surrogacy in America can cost anywhere from USD 90,000 (GBP 73,000) to USD 150,000 (GBP 120,000) or more.
Some estimates put the total cost as high as USD 200,000 (GBP 160,000) or more.
This cost typically includes expenses such as legal fees, medical expenses, surrogate compensation, and agency fees, among others.
Ana’s post was met with mixed reactions.
Nagore Benito Garcia commented: “What moment did it become normal for people to buy a baby?”
And ‘adriseya’ wrote: “A few years ago, custody was taken away from a mother of twins who was 64 years old for being too old to raise them, but of course, the difference here is that this woman is loaded, and that’s where justice remains silent.”
But Natalia Fernandez Mercader asked: “Why hasn’t Cristiano Ronaldo been judged for having three children through this method? And what about Ricky Martin? And Elton John? Oh, I see, you only criticise this when it’s a woman doing it because women still don’t support each other. I didn’t remember that.”
And Yolanda Canales Puente remarked: “I’m horrified by the amount of cruel comments I’m reading. Congratulations, Ana. You have achieved this out of love and I wish both of you a lot of happiness. It’s not right to express opinions with malice like in many of the comments I’m reading. What is done with a good heart is good, and any opinion on this matter is unnecessary.”
Critics of surrogacy have dubbed its commercialisation the “rent-a-womb” industry.
They argue that it exploits women by using their bodies for the sole purpose of producing a child.
They also criticise it for treating children as commodities that can be bought and sold.
