Nasal sprays in pregnancy?

Hi,

I have a bit of a cold atm. Nothing serious. But my nose is really blocked and it's driving me insane. It's not too bad while I'm standing up, but I can't breath at all when I'm lying down. It's not actually runny, or anything, just swollen sinuses. Saline drops don't do ANYTHING. So I was wondering, why is it that they say not to use decongestants? I would love to use a nasal spray, but as far as I know, they say not to use them in pregnancy... does anybody know why? What is it in those sprays that might be harmful?

By the way, I'm 9 weeks pregnant.

Thanks, Saša

Hi Sasa,

I have been watching this thread waiting for a reply as I want to know too. I have been sick 3 times in 12 weeks (aaarrrggghhh) and would really love to breathe through my nose at some point!

Anyone? Anyone?

Katabelleh, I know exactly how you feel...
The only upside to this is that DD's nappies don't bother my weak stomach so much now that I can't smell anything anyway...
From what I have found out, some sites say, it is fine to do (and best after consulting with your GP about it), but to really keep it in moderation. The reason for this being that some women have chronic stuffed noses during pregnancy and if you get too used to using decongestant sprays, they can end up having the opposite effect. It also seems that there can be a vast variety of ingredients in those sprays and some just haven't been studied enough in regards to their effect on the developing baby. But I wish someone could give us more definite information...
I'm usually not one to use a lot of medication at all, but it would be nice to be able to use it, only for when it's really bad...

Saša

talk to pharmacist - i believe the only nasal spray they'll recommend is Fess (saline essentially) as nothing else is recommended in pregnancy

I recently had the worst flu and wasnt getting any better
The chemist recommended me a nasal spray I could use and everything was fine :)

Briggsy's girl, yes, that's what my pharmacist told me when I was pregnant with DD. But saline is completely useless. I just wanted to know why the others are not reccommended.

Mrs BB, I might have to go and talk to another pharmacist, maybe they'll know. Can you remember the name of the spray you used?

Saša

I agree with BG. Talk to the Pharmacist as I know that there are quite a few nose sprays on the market that have steroids in them.

Hope you're feeling better soon.

:

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BB, I might have to go and talk to another pharmacist, maybe they'll know. Can you remember the name of the spray you used?

Sa?a

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sorry hun! I cant remember and I no longer have the bottle
My mum went and got it for me, she would have made 199% sure it was safe
Will ask her if she remembers!
:)

Hey!

Yeah your supposed to only use Saline..... but....

That being said, I have bad sinuses and I used Sinex or Drixine the whole way through my pregnancies. Everything was fine with me and my babies. I just tried to use it as little as possible...

I'd talk to a pharmacist.

I'm using rhinocort, a nasal spray antihistamine, for hayfever. It's a class A drug when used as a spray because apparently not much of it gets absorbed into your bloodstream from your sinuses. Certainly it turned spring hayfever from unbearable into OK for me. My ob and a pharmacist agreed it would be OK for me to use.

So I gather that maybe it depends on the drug, but certainly some nasal sprays are relatively safe. Probably rhinocort doesn't help much with a cold, it's more for hayfever, but maybe there is something else that would help with a cold.

(Yay for class A drugs - not perfect, but not a big risk either - just like crossing the road!)

I had my first OB appointment at 8 weeks and I had a very bad cold which wouldn`t go and like you I was so stuffed up in the nose and just couldn`t breath, I asked him if there was anything I could take, he said Beconase Nasal Spray was fine to use which is what I brought, oh the relief but then I went on to get infected sinuses so had to end up on antibiotics.

I hope your feeling better soon.

ive had the same problem, chronic blocked nose, getting worse, i used nasal spray for 3 days and it has made it worse! the one i had is safe to use though!