Is It Safe To Take Cold Medicine While Breastfeeding
Yes, there are cold medications that are safe to take while youre breastfeeding. Just be careful, because cold medicines often combine several drugs in one liquid or pill. To limit your babys exposure, avoid products that tackle more than one symptom or that have more than one active ingredient listed.
Tylenol Cold And Flu Severe Day & Night Use While
Tylenol Cold and Flu Severe Day & Night use while Breastfeeding, Important: Tylenol Cold & Flu Severe is a drug containing multiple ingredients, headache,1, Please check each of the links below, Dead with a Headcold and Breastfeeding, Its a fantastic source of immune-system support for both baby and mama, nasal swelling/ stuffiness.Dr, Tylenol and Advil are considered safe while breastfeeding, Paul Grin answered, and ibuprofen are safe to take while breastfeeding.Cold and flu season is never fun, In summary: Over-the-counter drugs containing dextromethorphan, Important: Tylenol Severe Cold & Flu Night Time is a drug containing multiple ingredients, MSCI, headache, Take these medications for fever, which is the original version of the medicine,, My 2 1/2 Week Old Is Has a Cold, Always consult your physician.Over-the-counter cold medicines are generally safe for breastfeeding moms, No problems: There is no contraindication for taking Acetaminophen while breastfeeding.
Is Ginseng Safe To Take While Breastfeeding
Ginseng is a blood thinner, so its not recommended for people who have certain medical conditions, such as diabetes and high blood pressure. Morais notes that, while some types of ginseng are more dangerous than others, there is limited evidence on the amount of ginseng that is passed on to breastmilk, so its best to generally avoid ginseng during breastfeeding.
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Safe Cold Medicines While Breast
Pseudoephedrine and phenylephedrine are oral decongestants for treating nasal congestion caused by colds, allergies, and sinus infections. Both ingredients are common in over-the-counter medications and considered safe while breast-feeding. But although safe, these ingredients can affect breast-feeding.
You should also be aware of how decongestants can affect infants. Some infants arent bothered by traces of the medication in their milk supply, but decongestants can cause irritability and restlessness in infants. If you dont want to risk problems with your milk flow or cause restlessness in your baby, you can skip an oral treatment and relieve congestion with a nasal spray decongestant.
Allergy symptoms sometimes accompany a cold. Fortunately, antihistamines are also safe while breast-feeding. But some allergy medications cause drowsiness.
Antihistamines with the ingredients diphenhydramine and chlorpheniramine may cause marked drowsiness and sluggishness. Breast-feeding while taking these medications can make your baby sleepy. You can avoid this side effect by choosing nondrowsy antihistamines, such as loratadine and fexofenadine . However, unlike other antihistamines, these will only help symptoms caused by allergies, not the runny nose that comes with a cold virus.
If youre dealing with a nagging cough, cough suppressants with the ingredient dextromethorphan are also safe to take while breast-feeding.
Is Oil Of Oregano Safe To Take While Breastfeeding
Oregano oil is promoted for its antibacterial properties but theres no research on taking it while breastfeeding. I worry that it would decrease supply, though, because peppermint and sage both decrease supply a fair bit, says Lamond. But theres no evidence around its safety or effect on milk supply.
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Cough & Chest Congestion
Benzocaine : Numbing Agent. Temporarily relieves pain associated with itching, sore throat. There are no adequate and well-controlled studies or case reports in breastfeeding women. Due to its low oral absorption after application, maternal blood concentrations are probably too low to produce any significant clinical effects in the breastfed infant. Benzocaine cough drops or lozenges are an excellent choice for cough relief in breastfeeding mothers. Common trade names: Cepacol.
Menthol : Numbing Agent. Commonly used for topical analgesics and sore throat relief. Only minimal amounts of Menthol would be transferred into breast milk. Adverse effects to infants from breastfeeding are unlikely due to low relative dose and first-pass metabolism. There are no adequate and well controlled studies in breastfeeding women. Menthol cough drops, lozenges, and/or chest rub are an excellent choice for cough relief in breastfeeding mothers. Common trade names: Halls, Ricola, Ludens, Vicks
Guaifenesin : This is an expectorant used to loosen respiratory tract secretions. It does not suppress coughing. The poor efficacy of expectorants in general would suggest that they do not provide enough justification for use in breastfeeding mothers. However, untoward effects to the infants have not been described. Common trade names: Robitussin, Mucinex
Maybe Safe For Breastfeeding:
- Vitamin C: Theres a lot ofdebate over whether or not vitamin C helps anyone fight off colds, pregnant or not, but if youre a C-devotee wondering if you can increase your dosage during an illness, you should check with your doctor. While normal amounts of vitamin C seem to be fine, theres not a lot of research about extra doses of vitamin C, like the kind you might take to boost your immune system when sick. According toLactMed, the Drugs and Lactation Database, high doses are probably finebut its better to get the green light from your healthcare provider.
Whatever you choose, there is one thing you should definitely not do: Stop breastfeeding your baby out of fear of spreading germs through close contact. In fact, breastfeeding can protect your infant from illness.
Its okay to keep feeding your baby while youre sickyour body is making antibodies for the virus, which get passed through your breast milk, explains Dr. Mello. So keep your babys feedings, but if youre worried, wear a mask and add in some extra handwashing.
If youre unsure at all about the safety of any medication while breastfeeding, skip Google and give your provider or childs pediatrician a call, Dr. Mello suggests theyre much more likely to have accurate and up-to-date information about which drugs should and should not be taken if youre breastfeeding.
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Can I Drink My Own Breast Milk If Im Sick
If you have a cold or flu, fever, diarrhoea and vomiting, or mastitis, keep breastfeeding as normal. Your baby wont catch the illness through your breast milk in fact, it will contain antibodies to reduce her risk of getting the same bug. Not only is it safe, breastfeeding while sick is a good idea.
Can You Take Flu Medicine While Breastfeeding
The flu can be mild, or it can be severe, and pregnant women, young children, and older adults are most at risk for developing complications related to the flu. Nursing mothers often have many questions about the flu. First and foremost, the flu cant be spread to a baby through breastmilk, and if a nursing mom gets the flu, she should continue breastfeeding. Breast milk contains antibodies and other protective elements that can actually help a newborn avoid getting the flu. Even if a mother is sick, in most cases, breast milk is the recommended form of nutrition for a baby. If a nursing mother is too sick to breastfeed, the general medical advice is to continue trying to express milk in order to keep up her supply and also provide the baby with nutrition. Some mothers experience a decline in their milk supply when theyre sick, but there are ways to avoid this.
Even though continued breastfeeding is the recommendation, it is still important to try and keep a newborn protected against the flu. Moms with the flu should wash their hands frequently and also make sure theyre thoroughly cleaning anything that comes in contact with the baby. Sometimes the best option may be to pump milk and then have someone who isnt sick give it to the baby in order to avoid spreading the virus. The flu vaccine is safe for breastfeeding mothers, as well as for babies who are least six months old.
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Watch Out For These Ingredients
The following are not recommended for nursing parents. Always check with a healthcare provider before taking any new medications, because some medications can reduce your breast milk supply or affect your baby’s sleep.
Ingredients to avoid while breastfeeding include:
- Alcohol: Some remedies have alcohol to help you sleep, so skip those.
- DayQuil: DayQuil contains dextromethorphan, a cough suppressant, and phenylephrine, a decongestant, which can reduce your milk supply.
- NyQuil: NyQuil contains dextromethorphan, but instead of phenylephrine, it contains doxylamine, an antihistamine and sleep aid, which can reduce breast milk supply.
- Diphenhydramine : This drug may cause sleepiness, and prolonged use may decrease your milk supply. Breastfeeding babies can also become drowsy or irritable.
- Pseudoephedrine : Decongestants that contain phenylephrine or pseudoephedrine can dry up milk supply.
Can I Take Tylenol Extra Strength While Breastfeeding
Regular strength Tylenol contains 325mg of Acetaminophen while the extra strength version contains 500mg, or roughly 50% more.
This means that while it is recommended to limit your consumption of Tylenol to 10 a day, it’s a good idea to limit your consumption of Tylenol extra strength to 6 doses a day .
Also, as with normal Tylenol, it is always recommended to take painkillers right after nursing or pumping. Like this the minimum possible amount of medication makes it into your breastmilk.
Lastly, it’s of course never ideal to take any chemical medication while breastfeeding. If you can, consider natural alternatives. In this overview we give a few pointers for the most common breastfeeding issues.
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Can I Take Cough Syrups While Breastfeeding
Cough syrups arent recommended while breastfeeding, says Lamond. Heres why: There are three active ingredients found in cough syrups. Pseudophedrine is oneits effective, but will lower your milk supply so its not advised. The second ingredient, dextromethorphan, doesnt dry up your milk, but its also not that effective. And the third, codeine, isnt effective and can be dangerous to baby. It passes through your breastmilk and in rare cases, it can harm your baby.
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Tylenol Cold And Flu Breastfeeding
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Can A Baby Catch A Cold From Breastfeeding
If you have a cold or flu, fever, diarrhoea and vomiting, or mastitis, keep breastfeeding as normal. Your baby wont catch the illness through your breast milk in fact, it will contain antibodies to reduce her risk of getting the same bug. Not only is it safe, breastfeeding while sick is a good idea.
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When Can I Resume Taking Dayquil Or Nyquil
Both Dayquil and Nyquil may reduce milk supply so it is best to wait until your baby has weaned to take either medication again. Although the antihistamine in Nyquil has somewhat less potential to reduce milk supply, it can also cause drowsiness and irritability in your infant, so it is still better to wait until after weaning to take this medication.
Can I Take Tylenol To Relieve Headache While Breastfeeding
Headaches can be a symptom of many conditions. First, it is worth checking if your headache might be cause by a breastfeeding issue, such as mastitis. See here a summary of the main breastfeeding conditions a nursing mum is likely to encounter.
Breastfeeding mothersoften experienceheadaches due to emotional stress such as anger, frustration, sadness, fatigue, etc.
If you think that might be your case, the best way to solve your headache issues is to work on what’s causing it. For instance like many nursing mums you might not be sleeping enough. Or not getting enough assistance taking care of the baby. So consider reaching out to your close ones for assistance.
Milk Boost Tea helps restore your energy levels postpartum
If emotional stress is what’s causing your headache, you might also consider Milk Boost Tea. It’s designed to help nursing mums recover from birth-giving by restoring their energy reserves. The more energy you have, the best you can cope with emotional stress.
Milk Boost Tea helps restore your energy levels postpartum
Lastly of course Tylenol can also help reduce the severity of a headache. It won’t help treat the underlying problem though, it’s just temporary relief.
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Are Homeopathic Remedies Safe To Take While Breastfeeding
Homeopathic preparations are now available on most pharmacy shelves, and they often look like cough syrups and other over-the-counter medications. The good news is, theyre safe to take while breastfeeding. The bad news is, homeopathic remedies dont appear to work. Homeopathy has been well researched and has never been proven to work better than a placebo. The idea behind itthat very diluted ingredients can cure similar ailmentsdoesnt hold up scientifically.
When To See A Doctor
Most colds are mild and last between three and seven days. If your symptoms dont improve within this time span or worsen, make an appointment with your doctor. Sometimes, the common cold mimics other conditions or develops into a secondary infection. More serious symptoms to watch out for include wheezing, an earache, a severe cough, and facial pain. These symptoms may indicate one or more of the following conditions:
- ear infection
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Can I Take Elderberry While Breastfeeding
When it comes to elderberry, the harms outweigh the benefits, says Morais. The evidence surrounding its effectiveness is limited, she explains. If elderberry isnt processed properly, it can be toxic to people and cause severe nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, so its best to avoid it while breastfeeding.
Will Cold Medications Reduce My Milk Supply
Menthol, pseudoephedrine, phenylephrine, and some antihistamines could potentially cause a drop in your milk supply. But just like all babies are different, all moms milk supplies are also different. What might reduce your milk supply might not reduce someone elses.
Talk to your healthcare provider when youre thinking about trying a medication. If you start taking it, you can always stop if you notice a reduction in your milk supply. Drinking more water should also help boost your milk supply.
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Cold Medications Precautions While Breast
If you take lozenges or purchase a sore throat gargle, make sure you read the ingredients on the back or side label. You should avoid medications containing povidone-iodine. This ingredient increases iodine levels in breast milk. Higher levels raise the risk of transient hypothyroidism in breast-fed babies.
You should also avoid cold medications with high alcohol content. These include some nighttime relief medications that cause drowsiness. Medications with multiple ingredients for multisymptom relief are convenient, but its safer to take single ingredient cold medications. This precaution limits your babys exposure to over-the-counter medications.
You can also limit your babys exposure by taking dosages around your babys breast-feeding schedule, if possible. For example, can you feed your baby before a dose, and then avoid breast-feeding for one or two hours immediately after each dose?
Another way to reduce your babys exposure is by avoiding extra strength cold medications like those that only require one or two dosages a day. These medications are convenient because you dont have to take a pill every four hours, but they also remain in your bloodstream and milk supply longer than other types of medication.
Can I Take Tylenol To Treat A Cold The Flu Or Fever While Breastfeeding
Before directly resorting to taking medicine, it’s always a good idea to check first if natural remedies help.
In this case try taking a hot shower or bath, a big cup of warm milk before sleeping and applying a cold pad on the forehead. In order to help your body fight, you can also consider drinking honey-lemon water or even Milk Boost Tea since it does a great job boosting nursing mum’s energy levels.
Tylenol can also help reduce some symptoms such as aches or fever so you can take it in limited doses. It won’t help treat the underlying problem though, it just temporarily relieves some symptoms.
By the way if you experience flu-like symptoms as well as breastfeeding pain and discomfort, you might have a breast infection like mastitis. Check this article to learn more about mastitis.
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Can I Take Robitussin While Breastfeeding
Guaifenesin, an expectorant found in over-the-counter medications such as Robitussin and Mucinex, loosens mucus and makes it easier to breathe. Its OK to take while breastfeeding, and it wont affect your supply, but expectorants generally dont work that well, says Ellen Giesbrecht, senior medical director of the maternal newborn program at BC Womens Hospital, so they might not be worth taking.
Do Cold Medications Pass Into Breast Milk
Its possible. Its a great feeling to provide your child with the nutrition they need through your breast milk. Well, the same biology that allows your child to get nutrients that way also allows medications to be passed to them through your breast milk.
Almost any medication you take can enter your breast milk to some extent, but most of them only get through in extremely small amounts, and they wont affect your baby. On the other hand, some drugs cross over more and could pose a risk to your baby. When it comes to cold medications, many are probably safe to take, but some can be passed to your baby in higher amounts or affect your milk supply. Well talk about these next.
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