Although some studies suggest overweight and obese women have a higher risk of unintended pregnancy, it’s probably not due to any difference in their behavior.

The University of Hawaiʻi’s Bliss Kaneshiro, a John A. Burns School of Medicine professor, found no correlation between body mass index and sexual behavior in an award-winning study conducted with former colleagues from the Oregon Health and Science University.

Because contraceptive use and efficacy are also risk factors for unplanned pregnancy, overweight women should be counseled as carefully as their slimmer sisters, Kaneshiro told the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ annual clinical meeting in May 2008.

Read the ACOG news release.

Tags: health, John A. Burns School of Medicine, medicine, obesity, UH Manoa, Vol. 33 No. 3