If you have allergies during pregnancy, avoid triggers to help reduce the need for medication during pregnancy. Uncontrolled asthma is riskier than taking asthma and allergy medications during pregnancy. Avoid cigarette smoke for your and your baby’s health. Quit smoking and don’t start over.
Why Is Allergy Important During Pregnancy?
Avoiding triggers reduces inflammation as well as prevents symptoms, so trigger management reduces the need for medication.
Allergens are the main triggers of asthma. It is very important to stay away from allergens such as house dust mites, animals, pollen, as well as cold weather or hot humid air for a long time during pregnancy. Take measures for indoor allergen management. Do not smoke and do not expose yourself to smoking.
GERD (Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease), commonly known as heartburn, can trigger asthma. In GERD, stomach acid backs up through the esophagus and can cause coughing; you may also have heartburn or a sour taste in your mouth. But reflux may go unnoticed without heartburn. Pregnancy can worsen GERD or cause more frequent heartburn, which can trigger asthma.
Sinusitis and colds worsen asthma. Treating rhinitis, avoiding allergens and avoiding individuals with colds will reduce the likelihood of developing sinusitis and having to add more medications for sinusitis or asthma.
Does Allergy During Pregnancy Make Asthma Or Rhinitis Worse?
If your asthma started when you became pregnant, the symptoms may be mistaken for the shortness of breath that some women feel with pregnancy. It is important to make an accurate diagnosis and begin a program for asthma control as soon as possible. An allergist can work with your gynecologist.
Statistics show that in pregnant women with pre-existing asthma, asthma remains the same in about one-third, worsens in about one-third, and improves in about one-third. Asthma worsening usually happens in the late second or early third trimester. Some women have less asthma in the last four weeks of pregnancy. If your asthma has changed for better or worse in previous pregnancies, it is likely to follow a similar pattern in subsequent pregnancies.
Common causes of nasal symptoms are allergic rhinitis, sinusitis, rhinitis medicamentosa (rebound symptoms from chronic use of an over-the-counter decongestant nasal spray) and vasomotor rhinitis (non-allergic). Pre-existing allergic rhinitis may worsen, improve, or stay the same. Hormonal rhinitis can occur during pregnancy, with symptoms typically appearing from the second month to birth; If there is no rhinitis before pregnancy, it disappears after delivery. The primary symptom is nasal congestion.
Can diagnostic tests be done for asthma or allergies during pregnancy?
Normally, skin testing for allergies can be done during pregnancy. The mother’s chosen skin test is done to help determine which or allergens are triggering the symptoms. Specific avoidance measures can then be recommended.
Does asthma worsen during childbirth?
If asthma is adequately controlled during pregnancy, it is rare for asthma to become a problem during childbirth.
Should I avoid taking medication for asthma or allergies?
Uncontrolled asthma during pregnancy can lower birth weight, increase the chance of your baby being born too early (premature baby) and even cause fetal death. Having adequate lung function during pregnancy is important for mother and baby to get enough oxygen. A continuous supply of oxygen to the fetus is necessary for the normal growth and survival of the fetus. If asthma is not controlled, oxygen depletion can occur in maternal and fetal blood.
An experienced doctor may choose medications to control asthma or allergies that pose little or no risk to the fetus. Medications that treat asthma or rhinitis (nasal symptoms) can be taken by pregnant women, while inhaled over oral medications are preferred. Medication for asthma during pregnancy is much safer for the mother and fetus than for uncontrolled asthma. During pregnancy, even taking oral or inhaled corticosteroids as needed to control asthma seems safe for mother and baby.
Nasal cromolyn or a nasal corticosteroid is a good first choice for the treatment of allergic rhinitis; It is best to avoid decongestants during the first trimester, and pseudoephedrine is the preferred decongestant in pregnancy. It is safe to get a flu shot made from dead viruses. ALWAYS get a doctor’s advice before taking any medication, even if an over-the-counter medication will treat a headache, cough, or cold.
The miscarriage rate is relatively high and these inevitable events are not related to allergies, asthma or their treatment.
Should I get the allergy vaccine during pregnancy?
Allergy vaccines do not adversely affect the pregnant woman or the fetus. Having a severe reaction to an allergy reaction to a vaccine given during pregnancy can be risky. Allergy vaccinations during pregnancy are increased with caution or may be kept at the same or lower dose. The allergy vaccine is not usually started while the mother is pregnant. These measures are taken to avoid risk. Continuation of allergy vaccinations during pregnancy is strongly recommended, with careful dosage monitoring. Ongoing immunotherapy, which helps control allergy or asthma symptoms, can reduce the need for medication.
Should I avoid breastfeeding?
Common medications used for asthma (beta2-agonists, corticosteroids, cromolyn) and rhinitis (some antihistamines and decongestants) have not been shown to adversely affect the nursing infant. Human studies in nursing mothers have not been done on each drug, but experience shows that mothers taking such drugs should not abstain from breastfeeding. Generally, small amounts reaching the baby have not been found to cause a problem.
Will my baby have asthma or allergies?
It is not possible to say that your baby will or will not necessarily have asthma or allergies. However, if one parent has it, the child is more likely to develop asthma or allergies; The risk is greater if both parents have allergies or asthma.
