"I'm not sure consumers think about the risks. They think, 'Gosh, I want elective induction at 38 weeks because I'm tired of being pregnant,' " she says. "Hopefully, educating them up front and setting expectations will make it easier."

Doctors who want the convenience to schedule daytime deliveries may be the biggest force for elective labor induction, says Lisa Sherwood, a certified nurse midwife and women's healthcare nurse- practitioner based in San Clemente. Women who "haven't slept well in weeks, have swollen ankles and sore backs" are vulnerable to the suggestion of elective induction. "People look at the doctor as the expert and will do whatever he or she suggests."

She says, "once you do an intervention, it begets more interventions, and many women feel they are led down a road they didn't understand. Women tell me, 'I didn't know it was going to end up like this.' Women need to be given all the information on what they are signing up for, not just told, 'You're going to have your baby today.' "