Taking medicines when you are pregnantcan affect baby’s health. A Norwegian and Canadian study provides a new illustration by fueling the controversy around the safety of paracetamol during pregnancy.
Work published in the scientific journal International Journal of Epidemiology suggests that long-term use of paracetamol in pregnant women may increase the risk of adverse effects on child development.
3000 pairs of siblings were followed for the purposes of the survey in order to establish comparisons between children exposed to paracetamol in their mother’s womb and others. The researchers also took into account genetic and environmental factors, drug treatment, alcohol consumption, tobacco and the appearance of possible infections during pregnancy.
It appears that children whose mothers took paracetamol for more than 28 days during pregnancy have poorer motor skills, communication difficulties and more behavioral problems than others. These side effects were also observed when paracetamol was taken less than 28 days, but to a lesser extent.
The results were compared with the effects of ibuprofen, another pain reliever, but no impact on the child’s development was seen.
No cause and effect relationship
Should we deduce from this that paracetamol during pregnancy poisons the life of the future child? The researchers do not go that far by arguing that this epidemiological study is not sufficient to prove the toxicity of paracetamol. “These results reinforce our concern that long-term use of paracetamol during pregnancy may have a negative effect on a child’s development, but that occasional short-term use is probably not harmful to the fetus.” , concludes Prof. Hedvig Nordeng of the University of Oslo.
Generally, pregnant women are recommended to limit the consumption of medication and not to resort to self-medication. Apart from treatments strictly banned during pregnancy (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, treatments against severe acne, antidepressants, anticoagulants, treatments against epilepsy, migraine or hypertension, etc.), it is strongly recommended to ask for the opinion of his doctor.
