What Can I Take?

You can take so many things!!! Anything that you are able to take while pregnant you can take while breastfeeding. Benedryl, Sudafed, etc.. You can also take Allergra, Zyrtec and a few other prescription meds. I have the same problem with seasonal allergies and am breastfeeding. This is what my doc and the peditican told me.

I also got the ok from both my ob and Ana's pediatrician to take claritin or benadryl. They also said it was ok to use the Zycam Extreme Congestion nasal spray. Good luck!

I took Allegra while I was nursing. It works great!

Elizabeth,

Last year I had the same problem as you. I was also nursing my daughter and I have hayfever in the late summer. I went to my doctor's office and asked her what the best kind of medication would be, and she gave me some samples of zyrtec, flonase, and I think maybe alavert? I also asked a pharmacist for advice too and he looked it up in his large book of medicines. I can't remember which one it is, but one of the ones my doctor gave me as samples is also perscribed for infants and toddlers who have allergies. Of course a little of any medicine will cross into the breastmilk, but the ones that I told you should be ok while nursing. I only used the samples of flonase during my allergy season, and only when I felt I couldn't stand it anymore. I was leary of taking anything while nursing my daughter. I am suprised that your pharmacist wasn't more helpful! I think they put the label of "do not take while nursing or pregnant" on medicines to cover their own behinds in case of lawsuits and such, but there is medication that is ok to take in such cases. Hope this helps!

S.-- mom of Rowan (16 months)

Hi i am currently 7 months preg and am having allergie problem my OB gave me a list of medications safe to take durring pregnancy and while breastfeeding here are the cough/cold/allergy list Benadryl, chlortrimation, claritin or claritin D, cough lozenges, robitussin DM or CF, sudafed, saline nasal spray, tylenol or tylenol Pm (contains benadryl) I hope this helps you. You could call you OB, OB Nurse or pediatrician and they should be able to help the pharmacy dosn't always know but the others can look at you history and med. records to help. I have been taking sudafed and robitussin DM and have been feeling fine and all our test have come back good (heartbeat, blood pressure, etc...)

Hi Elizabeth....

I too suffer from extreme allergies and unfortunatley there isn't alot you can take. You can take Benedryl, but that will make you pretty tired, so I would only take it at night and not every night. My midwife said that it does get passed through the breast milk, so it might make baby sleepy, but it is safe for you and the baby. You can also take Claritin, that has been found to be safe for breastfeeding and pregnant mothers, but again...she said it does get passed through the breastmilk, but it won't make you so tired...same with the baby. You can try taking bee pollen, that is suppsoe to help, but I havne't had luck with it.

When I was pregnant, I was allowed to continue to take Claritin, so I would check again with your doctor or pharmacist regarding that. Good luck!

It's a bummer, but I think most things that stop your nose running and eyes watering also affect other secretions - a.k.a. breast milk. I just struggled on with a runny nose :( Maybe something homeopathic might work for you and not affect your milk supply?

Good luck.

I caught a cold about a week after my daughter was born and I was told ALL I could take was tylenol because anything I take gets into the breast milk. Good luck! But I would talk to your doctor, maybe they have some other remedies. Also remember any of that "all natural, herbal" stuff is just like taking drugs so check with your doctor on that as well.

It's the pseudoephedrine (did I spell that right, lol?) that dries you up. I take Claritin on occasion, but NOT the Claritin D (that's the decongestant part). My doc told me I could take Claritin D if I absolutely needed to, but that the decongestant just worked to dry up your sinuses and therefor could affect your milk supply. I've only taken Claritin D a couple times (I've been nursing for 6 mos) and I haven't noticed a difference. Good luck! Allergies suck, I hope it's a decent year and ours aren't too bad.

My doctor told me the same thing. You could try using a netipot and see if that helps. You basically rinse out your sinuses with water. They are available at healthfood stores and co-ops. Additionally, filtered air also helps. I couldn't open the windows in my house or car and had to use the AC.

Hi, I have an 11 month old that I am breastfeeding and ran into the same problem when I had an awful cold. I bought a book called Medications and Mothers Milk and it was really helpful. From what the book says, it seems like most of the things are probably safe (Claritin D is a specific one that I looked up), but they may supress your milk supply. Some other meds may cause sedation, but only very few meds said that they were unsafe for sure. I would double check with a lactation consultant, they are usually very good about helping with that kind of stuff. Hope this helps.

Some medications (like antihistamines, for instance) can dry up/reduce your milk. Here's a great article to check out on the topic: http://www.mothering.com/articles/new_baby/breastfeeding/...

I use that article as my authority on the topic. You might also want to check w/a lactation consultant - they'll know much more specific info. than the pharmacist.

Good luck.

-M.
http://www.theSmartSeedsCompany.com

The SMARTseeds Company is dedicated to providing parents with meaningful ways to interact with their children through literature, music, art, poetry, toys and games.

I have allergies seasonally that make my face swell so bad I can't see out of my eyes, and last year when I was nursing I was only allowed to take Benadryl and Claritin. The other things I've heard meantioned were all previously prescribed, but I was told not to use them because they make your baby drowsy and can dry up milk supply. Good luck to you!

I have horrible allergies too and I was told by my obgyn that obviously taking nothing was best. But if I needed to take something while nursing to take either Benadryl (which just knocks me out!) or claritin which you can just get at walgreens over the counter....
My dr. had a little booklet of which drugs fall into which catagory of safe or not safe- or how much the baby gets (i believe that's how it works)... but the next step up being that the baby got more/some of it was the Zyrtec that I used to be on... I did take that once when I wasn't able to stop sneezing last year...
Hope that helps!
Good Luck and congrats on nursing him for so long!! I thought I'd never make it to a year sometimes but we did!

Tylenol is safe to take while pregnant and nursing, so I used to stick with only tylenol products. They make a great allergy medicine.

you can take clairatin (spelling?) and sudafed, and i think benadryl. but i would call your DR. to find the correct dosage. Its a law that all meds say "ask you Dr. if pregnant or breastfeeding" so don't worry, you can take a couple :)

I am nursing my 3 month old, and I take Claritin/Sudafed when my allergies are out of control. (The box says "ask a health professional before use" if pregnant or breastfeeding.) I do this only when necessary, not on a regular basis, and it doesn't seem to cause any trouble with the little guy. If you can find a nasal spray that works for you, it might be a better option since less medication would be in your bloodstream. Check with your doctor and/or pediatrician first, of course. :)

For a drug-free approach, you could also try a "neti pot" to clean out your nasal passages with a salt water solution. (Make sure to use plain sea salt with no anti-caking agents.) You can order them online, just do a google search on the word.

I have been breast feeding for a year now (actually tomorrow is her b-day) while I was pregnant my doctor told me sudafed was fine and now that I am still nursing, the doctor said I can continue to take the sudafed when I get my allergies or bad cold. My daughter is healthy and happy, and the sudafed does not affect her at all.