What are the most common medications used by women of childbearing age?
A survey in the United States in 1998-99 found that women in their childbearing years (ages 18 to 44) took over-the-counter medications more often than prescription medications.1 Pain medications were the most common over-the-counter drugs. Next were medications used to treat the common cold. Many pregnant women may take these medications before they realize they are pregnant. Among prescription drugs, birth control pills were used most often by women in their childbearing years. However, some women have health conditions – like asthma, epilepsy (seizures), high blood pressure, depression, and others – for which they must take medication. It is important that we know whether medications used to treat these conditions could be harmful to pregnant women, or to their unborn children.
