Pregnancy comes with a lot of responsibility, so knowing if you can take Theraflu while pregnant is necessary. Since you must be sure about the medicines you take during pregnancy, we give you a clear idea of what to expect with Theraflu.
Flu and headaches are often common in everyday life, so you can get them when pregnant. You can still take a few cold medications during pregnancy. But some might be very harmful to you or the baby.
Theraflu, an over-the-counter medicine, is often taken to cure flu and cold. But it is necessary to know if you can take Theraflu while pregnant. Doctor consultation is essential to avoid complications and confirm whether you can take Theraflu while pregnant.
Theraflu consists of antihistamines, decongestants, and pain relievers to relieve the stuffiness, congestion, and body aches induced by flu and cold. Since it has a mix of medicines, you should consult before consumption.
Everything depends on the doctor to answer whether you can take Theraflu while pregnant. However, research proves that taking medicine in limited amounts can do good instead of harm.
However, when taken regularly, the mother and the child face difficulties like congenital disabilities.
Expecting moms should always stick to medications only prescribed by doctors. Else it might turn problematic. Hence, it is better to confirm with your doctor if you can take Theraflu while pregnant.
Table of Contents
Effects of Theraflu while pregnant
There can be massive Theraflu side effects for expecting women. So, knowing the effects, it has on your body when taking Theraflu while pregnant is necessary.
Getting enough sleep is very important for pregnant ladies. Being a new mother might be a lot to deal with, and the pre-natal medicines might give you a feeling of dizziness, anxiety, and nervousness. The effect might increase by intaking Theraflu. But the effect differs with each pregnancy.
Some might have serious side effects like vomiting, nausea, hallucination, seizures, and even rapid heartbeat. The new moms who breastfeed should also confirm with their doctors before taking the medication. Taking the medicines prescribed is crucial because an overdose might harm you and the baby.
Cold and flu symptoms
Did you know that it is easy to confuse cold and flu symptoms because they are often similar? Cough, nasal congestion, runny nose, watery eyes, nasal drip, and sore throat are some symptoms of a cold. However, flu can sometimes have severe symptoms—for example, fever, chills, body pain, and headaches.
Also, fever is often linked to specific congenital disabilities in the baby. Hence it is essential to reach out to the doctor to eliminate any risks for the baby.
Natural remedies to avoid medication
Before you think can you take Theraflu while pregnant, here are some home remedies that can work without side effects:
- Gargling: Gargling with warm water and salt can help you with throat irritation. Usually, you should repeat 3-4 times a day to get better results.
- Rest: You need to get ample rest and sleep when required.
- Honey: Sipping honey with hot water is one of the most curable remedies to help with cough and cold.
- Water intake: Make sure the water intake is sufficient. The new mommies must increase their water intake as their bodies might get heated due to hormonal and pre-natal medications.
- Nasal saline: Nasal saline can also cure congestion and block the nose. It does not have any side-effect and is also safe to use.
- Humidifier: It is often used to maintain moisture in the air and prevent dryness. But it can also curb the effects of colds and flu.
Since you should avoid Theraflu while pregnant, certain supplements and herbs can alternate as safe options while pregnant.
For example, Zinc, Vitamin C, Elderberry, and Manuka honey, are perfect examples that can cure your problem without adverse effects. There are also a few essential oils that can help in your pregnancy.
Talk with your doctor or midwife before taking any supplements or trying at-home remedies or essential oils during pregnancy.
Can you take Theraflu while pregnant
You can get any medicine from the local pharmacies. However, it would help if you knew the safe ones to take during pregnancy. There are different medicines available depending on the symptom. Being specific about your symptoms will help you decide on the medicine to be taken.
There is much research on pregnant women’s cold and cough medications since they are not all safe. In your first trimester, it is usually avoided to take certain pills. The first trimester is the most critical phase of a baby’s development. And being a mother, you will never want to interfere with the process.
Before we cover the different medications you can use for cold and flu, make sure your doctor approves. The mother must be highly cautious during pregnancy, even with her food choices. With medicines, it is essential to confirm with the doctor since it may lead to many severe problems for the mother and child. If you need medications, try taking them only to relieve the symptoms.
Medicines to cure different symptoms are as below:
Cough
Dextromethorphan (Delsym, Robitussin)
The Dextromethorphan pill helps in fighting the causes of cough. As per the study, pregnant women who took this pill did not find any congenital disabilities in their children. Hence it is considered to be one of the safe medicine to take while you are pregnant.
Mucinex (Guaifenesin)
Guaifenesin is highly recommended to treat coughs as it works as an expectorant. It makes the mucus thinner in the lungs to cough it out. It helps with wet coughs, but its usage is also limited. So, it is best to avoid it during the first trimester. But it is considered safe in the later phases of pregnancy.
Runny nose
Antihistamines (1st Generation)
Most antihistamines are safe during pregnancy. Chlorpheniramine especially helps to relieve drippy noses during pregnancy. However, some side effects are sleepiness, dry mouth, and tiredness.
Antihistamines (2nd Generation)
Loratadine (Claritin) and Cetirizine (Zyrtec) have a heads-up from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) as alternatives for women after their first trimester. This 2nd generation of antihistamines is considered to be less bothersome after-effects.
Intranasal corticosteroids
The research was done among 2,500 pregnant women who used nasal sprays containing steroids. Fluticasone (Flonase, Flonase Sensimist) and budesonide (Rhinocort Allergy) are over-the-counter nasal sprays unrelated to congenital disabilities. However, nasal sprays may cause after-effects, like nasal dryness, nosebleeds, and stinging.
Congestion
Decongestants
This should be referred to the doctor since it is not entirely safe during pregnancy. For treating congestion, home remedies should be used. Staying hydrated is the most crucial part of treating congestion. Saline drops or a humidifier can help a lot as well.
Headaches and sore throat
Tylenol Acetaminophen
The expecting mothers have mainly been prescribed Tylenol as pain relief. Some researchers even suggested that taking this might not be very safe. However, it is still recommended by ACOG as the only pain reliever for pregnant ladies.
Cold medicines unsafe during pregnancy
Now that we have discussed the safe medicines let’s find out the unsafe ones. Some medicines are hazardous to take while pregnant and need extra attention:
Intranasal corticosteroids
Intranasal corticosteroids harm the baby’s development and may cause congenital disabilities. You must avoid taking triamcinolone (Nasacort). Research also suggests that expecting mothers should not take these medicines as these nasal sprays can cause disabilities in children.
Oral decongestants
Decongestants are not recommended for pregnant women. They are usually asked to try home remedies, not medication, for decongestion. Oral Sudafed and Sudafed PE are the most dangerous for expecting mothers.
But, as per research on over 4,000 expecting ladies, taking these decongestants did not harm the mother or the baby. Overall, the safety measure for the medicines isn’t sure. However, check with your doctor if you still need to use a decongestant.
Afrin (Oxymetazoline)
There aren’t many studies on this pill since it tends to rebound congestion. Doctors advise their patients to avoid taking these Intranasal decongestants. And it should only be used in a limited dosage when required.
NSAIDs
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicines are painkillers. It comprises naproxen (Aleve) or ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil). NSAIDs are said to be avoided for ladies who are pregnant.
NSAIDs can be harmful to the baby’s development. It can harm the amniotic fluid and the other organs of the baby. NSAIDs can also hinder the development of the baby’s heart.
Hence, acetaminophen can be more acceptable to relieve pain than NSAIDs. To use any painkiller during pregnancy, kindly consult your doctor.
Ethanol
Many medications may contain alcohol in the form of ethanol. Women, under any circumstances, should avoid the consumption of alcohol by pregnant women.
Even ethanol in the form of cough syrup can be harmful to the baby. Reading the label on the cough syrups before buying will eliminate such possibilities.
Sugary Syrups
During pregnancy, many women go through fluctuations in their sugar levels. Some develop diabetes in their first trimester and are asked to follow a healthy diet to control their sugar levels.
Cough syrups usually contain sweeteners for the taste, which can mess up the glucose level in the body. Hence, getting the ‘sugar-free’ syrups is recommended if required.
These syrups have artificial sweeteners, mostly considered safe when used in limited quantities. Consumption of these artificial sweeteners during your pregnancy can give rise to problems like childhood obesity and preterm birth.
Combined composition
There are a lot of varieties in the market available over the counter for coughs and colds. However, these medicines might have a composition of various products that you should avoid when pregnant.
For example, the medicine Claritin-D is composed of pseudoephedrine and loratadine. As discussed, the consumption of pseudoephedrine is harmful during pregnancy. Hence always check with your doctor before taking any medication.
Theraflu while pregnant WebMD
Let’s take a brief look at what reputed website WebMD has to say about Theraflu during pregnancy.
In pregnancy, the immune system does not operate to its maximum ability, as it protects the fetus from the body; think of it as an intruder. However, the common cough and cold become very common during pregnancy. This can have some vulnerable symptoms, including a blocked nose, sore throat, and cough.
Due to seasonal change, flu and cold go hand in hand. When you’re down with a cold and pregnant, the first thing that comes to your mind is your baby. As the symptoms rise, you might want to see the safe options for you and the baby to get away with the flu.
While colds and flu are annoying to go through, a few home remedies can resolve such issues. However, it takes time to show its effect on your body. Many homemade concoctions will help you avoid the need to ask, “can you take Theraflu while pregnant?”
As per WebMD, whether you can take Theraflu while pregnant is a strict no. They do not recommend pregnant women take Theraflu due to its side effects. But for, nursing mothers can take only a limited amount for their use.
After this article, the question of whether you can take Theraflu while pregnant clears up. The necessary steps for a safe pregnancy are what you need to follow accordingly. Lastly, always keep your GP in the loop so that you have expert suggestions on what to do.