Benadryl While Breastfeeding: Safe Treatment of Allergies

During pregnancy and childbirth, the woman’s organism undergoes serious tests. Because of stress, nursing mothers become vulnerable to various allergens. Most often the disease takes them by surprise. And then, the woman has to start looking for a safe drug that will not harm the child. Allergies are also quite widespread among nursing women but the variety of drugs is huge. What should a nursing woman take? Is it safe to use Benadryl while breastfeeding?

What Should You Do If You Get Sick?

Mother’s milk is the most reliable protection against colds and other diseases for the baby. Therefore, if she herself becomes ill, first of all, she needs to remain calm and then find a way out which is optimal for both mom and baby.

Most diseases do not interfere with breastfeeding. You should not be afraid that the baby will get the virus through your milk. Many diseases are transmitted by air. It means that none of the members of the family are immune to them. Most likely, the child is the most protected one in such a situation. After all, along with the mother’s milk, the baby gets antibodies that help the tiny organism to resist the infection.

If you have a high temperature, do not self-medicate. A visit to the doctor is a must in this case. Only competent treatment will help to avoid complications that can really put you in bed for a long time and harm your baby.

Allergy

Allergy is an unstable response of an organism to an object whose effects are perceived by the immune system as harmful. The body, protecting itself from the influence of allergens, uses all methods of defense. This defense is expressed as symptoms. The main symptomatology of allergy is represented by common and local manifestations.

Symptoms and Signs

The local manifestations of an allergy:

• Allergic rhinitis (swelling, redness, and swelling of the nose)
• Allergic conjunctivitis (redness of the eyes, lacrimation)
• Bronchial spasms (difficulty breathing, whistling during exhalation)
• Allergic otitis (edema of the ear canals, ear congestion, and its swelling)
• Allergic dermatitis (redness of the skin, itching, rashes), eczema

Common manifestations of an allergy are the combination of the main local symptoms. A clear manifestation of allergies can also be rashes on the abdomen and hands of a nursing mother. Liver disease, an unhealthy diet, or a chemical allergen can cause this reaction.

Allergies After Childbirth in a Nursing Woman

Allergic reactions bring mothers a lot of trouble. All the worries are not only about their own health but also the well-being of the newborn. But, fortunately, most of such fears are groundless. The child is not able to take allergic reactions overdue to breastfeeding. If the baby is prone to allergies, then most likely the allergy will be caused by allergens or hereditary predisposition. Not my mother’s milk.

Breastfeeding is one of the vital aspects of infant development. Thanks to the mother’s milk, the child receives all the useful microelements necessary for the normal functioning of a young, fragile organism. However, after the birth of the child, the mother’s body is still weak and, therefore, prone to infections and allergic reactions.

Allergy in a mother during breastfeeding is usually temporary. Although it may negatively affect the baby’s health. That’s why it is very important to know how to give the child the maximum dose of health and protection from diseases.

Allergy During Breastfeeding: Treatment

The treatment of allergies in nursing women begins with the loss of contact with allergens. If it doesn’t help, the next stage of treatment is a visit to a specialist. The doctor will detect the characteristics of your intolerance and prescribe a course of treatment – safe pills and drops.

The allergy in nursing women is treated as in any other patient. What’s more, the restriction in the use of medications is minimal. Obstetricians recommend giving preference to the use of inhalers and aerosols.

Many modern antihistamines do not harm a child. In a nursing mother, the allergy can be cured by almost any medication, except those containing theophylline. Theophylline is dangerous to the health of the child in the first six months of life. Breastfeeding mothers are offered to use gentle means of treating allergies. The reason is that the dose of such drugs falling into the blood decreases several times. It means that the baby receives less harmful substances with milk.

Benadryl

Benadryl is a brand name for a number of different antihistamine medications used to treat allergies. It is an antihistamine that reduces the effects of the natural chemical histamine in the body. Histamine can induce the symptoms of sneezing, itching, watery eyes, and a runny nose.

Benadryl is used to treat sneezing, runny nose, watery eyes, hives, skin rash, itching, and other cold or allergy symptoms.

Benadryl is also used to treat motion sickness, induce sleep, and treat certain symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.

The antihistamine Benadryl has a broncholytic, anticholinergic and sedative effect. The drug suppresses the cough reflex, reduces edema of the bronchial mucosa.

Benadryl can also be used for purposes other than those listed in this article.

The Kinetic Properties of the Pharmacological Agent Show the Following

• It is quickly and almost completely absorbed.
• Biological availability reaches 50%.
• The peak concentration of the active element in tissues and organs is observed 20-40 minutes after oral administration.
• The relationship with blood proteins is set at 99%.

Contraindications

The anti-allergic drug is not used in the following cases:

• Sleep disorders in children.
• High sensitization to active and additional elements (allergies to the drug).
• Bronchial asthma attacks.
• Blockage in your digestive tract (stomach or intestines).
• Bladder obstruction or other urination problems.
• Liver or kidney disease.
• Heart disease, low blood pressure.

Benadryl is Prescribed with Caution in the Following Cases:

• Glaucoma
• Diseases of the prostate gland (prostatitis in men)
• Problems with urination
• Diseases of the respiratory system – bronchitis, taking place in a chronic form
  • Emphysema of the lungs – a malaise which is characterized by the increased airiness of the lung tissue

Side-Effects

• Sleepy state. Increased excitability, especially in childhood.
• Allergic response.
• Photosensitivity – sensitivity to bright light.
• Dryness in the oral cavity. Excessive sweat secretion. Drowsiness.
• Chills. Tachycardia. Violations of coordination. Tremor (rapid movements of limbs).
• Neuritis – lesions of individual peripheral nerves of different etiology. Convulsions. Epigastric pain.
• Anorexia (one of the forms of an eating disorder).
• Nausea. Constipation. Difficult, frequent urination.
• Deterioration of attention and reaction.

Benadryl: Instructions for Use (Method and Dosage)

Use Benadryl exactly as directed on the label, or as prescribed by your doctor. Do not use in larger or smaller amounts or for longer than recommended.

• Pills: adults take one pill 1-3 times a day for two weeks. As a hypnotic, 1 pill before bedtime.
• Syrup: for adults, 1-2 teaspoons 3-4 times a day. The dose for children from 1 to 3 years is 0.5 teaspoons. From 4 to 14 years – 1 teaspoon 3-4 times a day.

Benadryl While Breastfeeding

Many diseases can be treated with medicines, without any harm to the child. Nevertheless, a small amount of a drug can pass through breast milk to the baby. Therefore, always tell your doctor or pharmacist that you are breastfeeding.

Talk to your doctor before you start taking any medications, including Benadryl while breastfeeding. It is important to know how the baby was born, what their weight and diseases are.

The use of Benadryl while breastfeeding is generally considered to be harmless. But always carefully check the active ingredients. Watch over your child for possible drowsiness if you use an antihistamine. Benadryl while breastfeeding is not an exception. Carefully look over your baby’s reaction to the drug.

Taking Benadryl While Breastfeeding

Benadryl while breastfeeding can potentially cause a sedative effect on the newborn. As well as on you.

A sufficient amount of medicine which can make a child fall asleep during feeding is unlikely to get into the milk. But it is quite possible.

Nevertheless, many antihistamines, including Benadryl, may reduce the production of milk in the glands. In young children (less than six weeks), the slow flow of milk from the mammary glands often leads to the children falling asleep at the breast before they eat enough.

In another way, it can be called a “sleepy from drugs baby “, when in fact the child just falls asleep from a longer feeding.

Allergies and other diseases that have appeared in a nursing mother must necessarily be treated. There are practically no restrictions in the preparations for treatment. Benadryl while breastfeeding is safe. The drug will not be harmful to the baby.

If an allergic reaction has appeared in the baby, the woman will have to follow a hypoallergenic diet that does not allow the ingestion of allergens into her body, and, consequently, into the breast milk.

Breastfeeding, on the background of an aggravated allergic reaction, should take place as long as possible. It will allow the child to adapt to allergens.