Divorce in May-December Relationships

"People generally don't want to be saddled with someone unhealthy - -and most of us subconsciously associate getting older with mounting health problems," he said. "Genetically, we're wired to pick mates who are good ''specimens.'' It’s a primal urge."   

But there are reasons why someone might be attracted to an older person. "...Generally, men are going through a mid-life crisis, and rather than making changes to their current marriage, they choose someone younger, who is easier to manipulate, and in ten years, the relationship goes bad, because they have to deal with the same things again," said Goodwin. "Younger girls often like older men, because they're established and powerful. That's very attractive. And sometimes, you just fall in love with an older or younger person."  

Susan Bernit, in a blog on BlogHer.com, cautions people who date older partners. "Be open to the idea that the 'right person' may not be the one you expected. Accept you don’t have to be equal economically, socially or athletically," she writes. "Make sure you are equal in terms of values, outlook, ability to communicate and what you want out of the relationship. Don’t talk down or be ageist. Find someone who is thrilled with you, regardless of age, but accepts you as the age you are."

Michael Semon thinks it's tougher for divorced women looking for new love -- so they may have to consider other options, like dating much older men. "Developmentally, he's going to have different needs, and that can present a problem. Women with children need that man to invest in the children, invest in her, participate actively in their lives as a family," he said.

However, an older-younger couple will always make the news -- whether a tabloid or area gossip. And the gossip is likely to be worse when, like Moore and Kutcher, the women is the older partner. "I don't think there's any way to deal with public gossip. If you're marrying someone of a different color, it's the same. People will talk about it. I think that picking a mate is always difficult," Goodwin said. "If you're an older woman, you're just going to deal with it. That's what society believes."

Semon said couples should work on their problems, not the age difference. "Each person has to change the way they're thinking about how to have a relationship. In other words, many people come to a relationship with the assumption of what a relationship should be," he said. "Relationships are never 50-50. They're never 60-40, or 30-70. Relationships that are successful are 100-100. People should assume full responsibility for themselves."  

The only test of measuring the relationship is time, he said. 

Krystle Russin is a freelance journalist in Austin, Texas. She has been involved in journalism for seven years, hosting a PBS show and contributing to different print and online publications. She graduated from the University of Texas with a degree in government (pre-law), and minors in journalism and history.