What should I do if I have a severe cough during pregnancy?

Coughing can occur at any time. If an ordinary person coughs, he may be able to endure it or take some medicine to recover. However, pregnant women are very different from ordinary people after all. If they cough during pregnancy, they will not only feel uncomfortable, but also worry that it will have an adverse effect on the development of the fetus. So, what should I do if I have a severe cough during pregnancy? Let’s look at the solution below.

1. Balanced diet and nutritional supplements

If a pregnant mother has a cough, she should eat more light food and pay attention to a proper nutritional combination. When you have a cough, you can eat more fruits and vegetables to supplement vitamin C, protein, and trace elements to improve your immunity.

2. Take the approach of dietary therapy

If the expectant mother’s throat is really dry and painful, she can drink a glass of honey lemon water to moisturize the throat.

3. Use salt water to disinfect

Expectant mothers can drink some light salt water, as salt can relieve sore throat caused by pharyngeal infection.

4. Get more rest and drink more water

Rest can regulate the body, and drinking water can help toxins be excreted through urine and relieve symptoms.

5. Take cough medicine

General cough suppressants will not have any impact on expectant mothers and fetuses. Taking some reagents is effective in treating coughs, but they must be taken under the guidance of a doctor.

Effects of cough during pregnancy on the fetus

Generally speaking, a minor cough will not usually affect the fetus, but a prolonged cough will cause the following two harms to the fetus.

1. The high fever caused by a cold and the toxins produced by metabolic disorders will stimulate uterine contractions, causing miscarriage and premature birth.

2. The virus enters the fetus directly through the placenta, which may cause congenital heart disease, cleft lip, hydrocephalus, anencephaly and microcephaly.

Therefore, if the expectant mother's cough symptoms do not improve, or if she develops high fever, severe cough, etc., she should go to the hospital for diagnosis and treatment. She should not take medicine on her own, so as to avoid the inappropriate medicine affecting the growth of the fetus.