Medicine and Drug Use During Pregnancy

During pregnancy and the first few months of life, your baby is protected against many infections from your immune system Overview of the Immune System The immune system is your body's defense system. It helps protect you from illness and infection. The immune system's job is to attack things that don’t belong in your body, including: Germs... read more . This protection comes to your baby through your bloodstream and across the placenta during pregnancy. If you haven't had all your vaccinations, some are safe to get during pregnancy. However, some vaccines shouldn't be given and some are given only when you have a high risk of infection.

Your doctor will recommend vaccines that are safe to give during your pregnancy:

Vaccines that aren't safe during pregnancy include:

Alcohol is a leading cause of birth defects. It can cause:

Fetal alcohol syndrome is a set of problems that includes abnormal development of the baby's head and face, brain damage, low intelligence, stunted growth, and other problems. As few as 3 alcoholic drinks a day can cause fetal alcohol syndrome.

You shouldn't drink alcohol while pregnant.

Doctors are unclear if caffeine during pregnancy harms a baby. Caffeine is in coffee, some teas, some sodas, energy drinks, chocolate, and some drugs.

Doctors think that caffeine is safe in small amounts, such as one cup of coffee per day.

However, drinking more than 7 cups of coffee per day may cause:

Doctors suggest drinking very little caffeine during pregnancy. You can try decaffeinated drinks instead.

If you smoke cigarettes when pregnant or even breathe in smoke from people who are smoking, it can hurt your baby. It may cause:

You shouldn't smoke at all while pregnant and should avoid being around smoke as much as you can.

Doctors are unclear if marijuana during pregnancy harms a baby but suggest that you avoid it. Marijuana may cause behavior problems in your baby if you use it heavily while pregnant.

Aspartame is an artificial sweetener in some food and drinks and small amounts may be safe during pregnancy. For example, pregnant women should drink less than 1 liter (about 3 cans) of diet soda per day.

However, pregnant women with a disease called phenylketonuria Overview of Amino Acid Metabolism Disorders Amino acid metabolism disorders are hereditary metabolic disorders. Hereditary disorders occur when parents pass the defective genes that cause these disorders on to their children. In most... read more shouldn't eat or drink aspartame.

Amphetamines during pregnancy may cause:

Bath salts is the name given to a group of drugs made from different chemicals that give the same high as amphetamines. Using bath salts during pregnancy may cause:

Using cocaine during pregnancy can narrow blood vessels in the placenta, which can cause:

Women who use cocaine during pregnancy often do other things that can harm their babies, such as smoking, using other drugs, or getting poor medical care. Because of this, doctors aren't sure which problems are caused by the cocaine alone. Still, you shouldn't use cocaine at all while pregnant.

Hallucinogens include Ecstasy (MDMA), methamphetamine, and LSD. Using hallucinogens during pregnancy may cause:

Opioids include medicines (such as oxycodone, methadone, and morphine) that doctors prescribe to relieve pain. Heroin is an illicit opioid that people become addicted to and isn't prescribed by doctors. Using any opioids for a long time during pregnancy may cause:

If you have a severe, painful injury (such as a broken bone or a bad burn), it's probably safe for your doctor to prescribe an opioid for several days. Otherwise, you should avoid using opioids.