POSTED THIS FROM A WEBSITE, I FIGURE DR'S ARE SMARTER THAN ME
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If you develop a nasty cold or have an allergy attack during your pregnancy, you may be tempted to pop your favorite decongestant or cough medicine to ease your discomfort. But is it safe to do so? Maybe not. As long as you are pregnant, anything you consume has the potential to affect your unborn child. It's important to use caution before consuming any drugs -- even over-the-counter decongestants or other cold medications.
What are the risks of taking medications during pregnancy?
The answer is that we simply dont know for sure. It turns out that there is little information about the effects of medications on the developing fetus. Few drugs are tested on pregnant women because of the risks involved in such trials. We know that certain medications are definitely not safe, for example, the acne drug Accutane can cause miscarriage and birth defects. But many others have not caused problems and are assumed to be safe. Still, some doctors and pregnant women view these drugs as "guilty until proven innocent" -- that is, unsafe unless shown in clinical trials to cause no harm to a developing fetus.
Despite this uncertainty, a government study found that more than half of all pregnant women are prescribed some form of medication, and in nearly half of those cases the dispensed medication had not been proven safe for use during pregnancy. Researchers at the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality found that 64 percent of the pregnant women studied were dispensed medicines other than vitamin or mineral supplements. Of those, nearly 40 percent received drugs for which safety during pregnancy has not been established.
It is important to remember that over-the-counter products are not necessarily safe either. For instance, aspirin should be avoided during your pregnancy unless your doctor says the benefits outweigh the risk, because it could increase the risk of miscarriage or birth defects. During the last three months of pregnancy, aspirin can cause delivery complications.
Ibuprofen, another common anti-inflammatory medication widely used for pain relief, is also not recommended during the last trimester. Many doctors suggest acetaminophen, such as Tylenol, for pain and fever relief, which is thought to be safe at any time of pregnancy. Many common cough medications contain alcohol, which has been shown to be harmful to the developing fetus, although some doctors question whether there is enough alcohol to make a difference in a few doses of cough medicine.
In addition, some consumers assume that it is safe to take herbal remedies to ease their symptoms, reasoning that these products are safe because they are made from "natural" ingredients. In fact, manufacturers of herbal products arent required to meet the same safety standards that traditional drugmakers are, and studies have found that quality and integrity often vary widely from one batch of herbal products to another.
What is safe for me to take?
You can take medications to ease your symptoms; the key is to proceed with caution. While it is impossible to entirely avoid risk, government regulators have accumulated a large body of information about common medications, and your physician will help you make the safest choice.
According to a report in the American Family Physician, pseudoephedrine hydrochloride (Sudafed, Novafed) is the safest decongestant to take if you are pregnant. Chlorpheniramine (Chlor-Trimeton) is the safest antihistamine. The cough suppressant dextromethorphan hydrobromide (Benylin) is among the safest, but pregnant women should still approach it with caution. Taking pseudoephedrine during the first trimester may increase the risk of a hernia in your baby, so your doctor might tell you to avoid this drug for the first three months of pregnancy. Likewise, the expectorant guaifenesin (Humibid L.A.) seems to be safe in the second and third trimesters, but it might increase the risk of birth defects if taken during the first trimester.
Beware the cold remedy that practically crams an entire pharmacy into one convenient package. A single tablet might contain a pain reliever, an antihistamine, a cough suppressant, and a decongestant. One or more of them could harm your developing baby, so it's wise to approach multisymptom cold pills with caution.
The federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has developed a system that requires pharmaceutical companies to label medications according to the risk they pose to a developing fetus. Pharmaceutical companies must label medications according to a system of five categories: A, B, C, D and X.
Category A drugs are defined as follows: "Adequate, well-controlled studies in pregnant women have not shown an increased risk of fetal abnormalities." On the other end of the spectrum fall drugs that fit Category X: "Studies, adequate well-controlled or observational, in animals or pregnant women have demonstrated positive evidence of fetal abnormalities. The use of this product is contraindicated in women who are or may be pregnant."
Health professionals point out that not taking medications can also create health problems -- for both mother and child. For instance, women with asthma are strongly advised to manage their symptoms. Uncontrolled asthma can restrict the supply of oxygen in both the mother's and baby's blood, threatening the health of the infant. "When left uncontrolled, asthma is the most common, potentially serious, medical problem that may complicate pregnancy," according to The American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI). (Experts at AAAAI advise pregnant women to use inhaled -- not oral -- asthma medications whenever possible.)
Your physician can help you decide how to weigh benefits versus risks when considering medications, depending on your symptoms, your overall medical condition, and the stage and condition of your pregnancy.
Steps to take when you develop a cold or have an allergy attack:
Ask your doctor before you take any medications, including over-the-counter and herbal products.
Check the label before taking any medication. Be sure to select a cough medicine that is alcohol free.
If you have questions about a specific medication, do your own research. The FDA provides a list of pregnancy registries on its Web site. A pregnancy registry collects information from women about medication they've consumed during pregnancy and tracks health and pregnancy outcomes.
Try easing your congestion without cold medicine by using a saline spray, taking a warm shower, and breathing warm steam from a vaporizer. Gargling with salt water can also ease the pain from a sore throat.
But the most important approach you can take is preventive: Do what you can to avoid infection and allergic reactions in the first place. Steer clear of the substances that trigger your allergies, wash your hands frequently to avoid catching colds, eat well, and get plenty of rest.
