More and more women have having babies later in life when they have their lives and financial situations in order. Heath risks increase anyway for older women and pregnancy sometimes aggravates or brings on additional medical conditions. However, older women are more aware of the need for folic acid during pregnancy, as well as the need of maintaining a healthy diet and getting lots of exercise than younger women usually are. They also have higher rates of choosing to breastfeed, rather than bottle feed their infants than younger mothers do.
It is important for older women to be in good heath before they become pregnant. Pregnancies after age 35 have a greater chance of ending in miscarriages and for having babies that have problems at birth. This is why doctors tend to pay a lot of attention to ensuring mothers over this age are healthy, often scheduling appointments closer together so that they can monitor the health of both the mother and the baby. Since mothers at this age have much more life experience, the likelihood of alcohol consumption is increased, which also increases the possibility of the baby being born with fetal alcohol syndrome.
Diabetes, heart disease and arthritis may have started to manifest themselves in older women before they become pregnant, but not enough that it interferes with their daily lives. However, pregnancy at this age does compound the symptoms of these medical conditions, endangering both the mother and the baby. High blood pressure is quite common during pregnancies for older women and this condition may not go away when the baby is born. A women who does have a stressful job can also develop complications in the pregnancy at any age, but it is more likely as they get older.
The risks to the baby when the expectant mother is older do not happen to everyone. Some women sail through the nine months without a hitch and may even think that the doctor is being overly cautious. However, there are so many risks involved that doctors usually do generalize in this area and want to make sure that nothing happens to the mother or baby that could have been avoided. Some of the common problems that do occur in women that get pregnant after the age of 35 include:
- Ectopic pregnancy ?The fetus develops in the tube instead of the womb and this results in miscarriage. This usually requires surgery to remove the damaged Fallopian tube.
- Chromosomal abnormalities ?One example of this is a baby born with Down's Syndrome
- Multiple births ?this is true if the mother has been trying to get pregnant for a while and takes fertility drugs
- Complications during delivery
Older women who become pregnant usually have more screening and tests than a younger woman. These screenings help to determine if a certain medical condition exists in either the mother or the baby.
When women get pregnant later in life, they often have a more difficult time adjusting to the fact that they are pregnant, especially if it is unplanned. They are thrilled at the prospect of having a baby, yet they know that the freedom they have enjoyed for so long will be curtailed. This often causes them to be more emotional than usual.
HIV infections are on the rise. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of Americans over 50 who are infected with HIV have grown over 5 times (16,300 people in 1995, to 90,600 in 2003). While seniors represent about 14% of people with HIV, senior women represent 18%. The numbers of women with infections are even higher for American women of color, and come in at a staggering 47% when looking at world HIV infection rates. That means that just under half of all HIV infections are found in women worldwide.
One reason for the higher number of older women with HIV was found in a study recently published by Emory University. They surveyed 514 women over the age of 50, and found that their knowledge about transmission was poor. For example, approximately 50% of women believed that vasectomies and diaphragms prevent the spread of HIV.
Other reasons include the fact that many older women, who have sex with men, are also not using condoms, knowing they are past the point of having to worry about pregnancy. Women also erroneously think they can’t get HIV if they are not engaging in behaviors they deem as risky. The truth of the matter is this. HIV is a virus. It’s an opportunist. It does not care if you are male or female. It does not care who you have sex with, nor the numbers of people you have sex with. It certainly does not care about the color of your skin, you bank balance or you age.
HIV is primarily spread in two ways. First is though the sharing of contaminated intravenous drug equipment. Second, and more commonly, HIV is spread by unprotected sexual encounters. Women frequently are the receptive partners, and the receptive partners are more likely to become infected. Women who are post menopausal are at higher risk because of the changes in the vaginal tissue. With less estrogen to nourish the vagina, the tissue atrophies (becomes thin) and there is less lubrication. A woman can easily get tiny tears in her vaginal tissues, thus leaving an opening for virus to gain entry to her blood stream.
What’s a woman to do?
1.Know your own HIV status. Contact your health care provider, or (if you want anonymous testing) the local health department for testing. I do not recommend home testing at this time. First, if you are positive, are you really? And if you are negative, are you really? If positive, confirmatory blood testing is required. Many offices have started using rapid testing in the office where preliminary results can be obtained in 20 minutes. In the meantime you can get the appropriate information on how you need to proceed.
2.Know your partners history (this goes for both male AND female partners ladies!). Do they have a history of multiple partners and unprotected sexual encounters? Have they been tested? When? Did they get a follow up test at 6 months? What were the results?
3.Condoms and lubrication are essential. Use them not only on your partners body parts that may be entering you, but also on any toys you may be utilizing as well There are several online and confidential sources to purchase lubricants, condoms and gloves.
4.Limit your exposure when possible. Think twice if you are engaging in high risk behavior with a casual or new partner.
5.Educate yourself. The information presented here is just a small portion of what you need to know. Each of us bears the responsibility to educate ourselves and our partners.
For many women, sexual activity does not stop just because they reach a certain age. I encourage you to continue to enjoy yourselves, but do so safely.
Both Warren Wong & Paul Headen are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.