Women over 40 still need birth control

By VIVI HOANG • Staff Writer • July 24, 2008 Just because you're done having kids doesn't mean your body will follow suit. The common misconception among many women 40 and older that they have passed their childbearing years is partly why just more than 50 percent of pregnancies in this age group are unplanned. Sixty-five percent of those pregnancies end in abortion, the highest rate among all age groups, according to the Guttmacher Institute. "The teenagers, they don't think it's going to happen, and the same thing happens with our 40-year-olds," said Dr. Gloria Richard-Davis, chairwoman and professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Meharry Medical College. "So they're not focusing on reliable contraception." Outside of condoms and diaphragms, these days women of this age group have a multitude of birth control options, from... [read full story]