During pregnancy, each woman cares for her and her baby’s health.
Many of them have health conditions prior to pregnancy, and they still to carefully manage the conditions.
One important question is whether a mom-to-be should take medications during pregnancy. Unsafely drug use may put baby’s life in danger.
Recent studies have shown that some medications may harm the baby if they are taken during pregnancy.
For example, one study published in the British Medical Journal shows that antidepressant use during pregnancy is linked to increased risk of psychiatric disorder diagnosis in children.
Antidepressants are drugs that can help treat depression.
Depression is common in women of childbearing age, and antidepressants have been increasingly used during pregnancy in the past few decades.
About 2-8% of pregnant women receiving this treatment.
In the study, researchers analyzed data from 905,383 children born between 1998 and 2012 in Denmark and followed up for a maximum of 16.5 years.
They found a higher risk for psychiatric disorders among children of mothers who used antidepressants before and/or during pregnancy.
They also observed a higher risk of psychiatric disorders in children whose mothers continued antidepressant use during pregnancy.
However, the researchers stress that this finding should be interpreted with caution.
This is as the link may be due to the mother’s illness combined with antidepressant exposure in the womb.
Another study from the Endocrine Society shows that when women take the common diabetes medication metformin during pregnancy, it may put their children at increased risk of having obesity or overweight.
Currently more pregnant women are taking metformin to treat gestational diabetes, or a condition called polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
PCOS is a common cause of infertility and can put women at risk of developing diabetes and other metabolic health problems.
When pregnant women with PCOS or gestational diabetes take metformin, the medication crosses the placenta and is passed to the fetus.
The study finds that the offspring of women who took metformin for PCOS during pregnancy are more likely to meet the criteria for obesity or overweight.
The researchers said the effect is surprising and more research is needed to confirm the finding. However, pregnant women should be cautious when taking medications.
Experts from FDA suggests several tips for safe medication use during pregnancy:
Always talk to your healthcare provider before you take any medicines, herbs, or vitamins. Don’t stop taking your medicines until your healthcare provider says that it is OK.
Check the drug label and other information you get with your medicine to learn about the possible risks for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding.
Ask your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist about the information you get online. Do not trust that a product is safe just because it says ‘natural’.
Tell your healthcare provider about any problems you have with your medicine. Also, tell FDA about any serious problems you have after taking a medicine.
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