Shenzhen women aged 30 to 39 showed the most desire to have a second child after the city started to accept applications from qualified families from March 28.

The Chinese government relaxed its single child policy in November, allowing families to have a second child if either spouse is an only child.

From March 28 to April 3, 277 families in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, applied to have a second child, according to the local family planning authority.

The majority of the hopeful mothers — 76 percent — were aged 30 to 39, 1 percent was older than 40, and the remainder were aged 20 to 29, the official figures showed.

"The applications meet our expectations," said Sun Meihua, deputy director of the Shenzhen Health and Family Planning Commission. "The new policy won't generate a baby boom because many parents are very rational and will take birth costs and educational costs into consideration."

Doctors advised that women who previously had Cesarean deliveries should have regular prenatal examinations in case of a Cesarean scar pregnancy, which could endanger both mother and child.