Usually woman above the age of 40 do not use birth control. It is not safe for them to take birth control pills because the estrogen present in the pills results in harmful blood clotting in the body.

The pills are of greater risk among women suffering from obesity, as they tend to increase the diabetes and blood pressure in their body. But nowadays the estrogen content in the pills has reduced a lot to make it safe for older and lean woman. According to Dr. JoAnn Manson, endocrinologist from Harvard, the recent low-dose birth control pills are a safe option for healthy women above the age of 40. Some women prefer these pills because they help to control the irregular bleeding during menstrual period and have also helped to reduce ovarian cancer and hip fractures.

Overweight women who smoke and suffer from high blood pressure and migraines should be guided to progestin-only treatments or IUDS. Studies have found that women above 35 are more prone to breast cancer because of the estrogen-progestin pills which they use for menopause compared to oral contraceptives. Sterilization continues to be the safest form of contraception in older women while vasectomies in older males.