Inhalation of calendula during pregnancy. Is it worth using inhalations during pregnancy? Sodium chloride: inhalation during pregnancy
People with weakened immune systems suffer from respiratory infections much more often than those with normal immune systems. In pregnant women, the body's defenses are reduced due to hormonal changes in the body and some other factors. During pregnancy, a woman becomes especially vulnerable to infections.. It's hard to find a mother-to-be who hasn't had a cough or runny nose in 9 months. It is undesirable to be treated with medications during this period, so inhalations during pregnancy come first.
Advantages of inhalations
Inhalations during pregnancy are the safest and most effective method of treatment. Inhaling drug vapors does not put any stress on many organs and systems, which is often the case with traditional treatment. Inhalations for colds have the following advantages over other methods of treatment:
- Medicines are delivered directly to the respiratory tract and have an anti-inflammatory, antiseptic and anti-edematous effect.
- Inhaled medications do not have a negative effect on the stomach, kidneys and liver. They work only locally and are almost not absorbed into the bloodstream.
- If you use inhalations for a cold at an early stage, you can prevent the development of the disease and various complications.
- You can breathe in vapors of medications at all stages of pregnancy. This manipulation does not have a harmful effect on the expectant mother and baby.
It is best to carry out inhalations with a special device - a nebulizer, which can be purchased at a pharmacy.. In this case, fine particles of the drug reach even remote areas of the bronchi and have a therapeutic effect.
Hot steam inhalations are strictly prohibited at high temperatures and certain heart diseases!
Contraindications
There are some contraindications when it is not recommended to breathe in vapors of medications with an inhaler, these include the following conditions:
- Allergy. In this case, you should avoid inhaling essential oils and decoctions of medicinal herbs.
- Increased body temperature. The procedures should not be carried out if the body temperature exceeds 37.5 degrees.
- Chronic diseases of the heart and respiratory organs.
- Poor health during pregnancy or severe toxicosis.
While pregnant, any medications for inhalation should be discussed with your doctor.
Indications
Inhalations help during pregnancy and against a severe runny nose. In this case, mucus leaves the nasal passages more easily and the feeling of dryness in the nose disappears. If you start treating a runny nose in a timely manner in this way, the risk of developing rhinitis is significantly reduced.
Inhalations can be carried out from the first days of pregnancy, in some cases it is not necessary to use medications. Sometimes you can get by by inhaling vapors from mineral water or saline solution.
Cough during pregnancy must be treated. During coughing attacks, severe tension occurs in the abdominal wall, which can lead to uterine tone.
Types of inhalations
For a severe dry cough or runny nose, you can use two types of inhalations, each of which has its own advantages.
Steam inhalations
This method of treating colds was actively used by our grandmothers. To carry out this procedure, you need to take a three-liter saucepan and a collection of medicinal herbs. The plant material is brewed in the usual way, and then, covered with a blanket, the resulting vapors are inhaled. It is good to carry out such procedures with boiled potatoes or eucalyptus.
With this method, the airways are well warmed up and softened. Thanks to the action of medicinal herbs, inflammation and swelling of soft tissues are reduced. Immediately after the procedure, the condition improves.
The disadvantage of steam inhalation is the increased load on the heart and the high risk of burns.
Nebulizer
Using a nebulizer during pregnancy is preferable. Medicinal compounds are sprayed into fine particles using a special compressor. The patient inhales vapors that go directly to the site of inflammation. In the nebulizer, the liquid is not heated too much, so burns are excluded.
Medicinal steam well moisturizes the mucous membranes of the respiratory organs, relieves irritation and inflammation. Some medications for inhalation have an antiseptic effect.
By inhaling drug vapors or water, the functions of the ciliated epithelium of the bronchi are improved, due to which sputum is released more easily.
What inhalations are possible for pregnant women?
For wet and dry coughs, different solutions for inhalation are prescribed. Inhalation of chamomile during pregnancy will help with non-productive cough and sore throat. In addition, you can use a decoction of sage, plantain, thyme or marshmallow herbs. Wet cough is treated with decoctions of coltsfoot, wild rosemary, string, plantain, yarrow and eucalyptus. In addition, other compositions can be used.
Mineral water
Procedures with alkaline mineral water have proven themselves well in treating coughs. For treatment you can take Borjomi, Essentuki or Narzan. It is better to buy mineral water at a pharmacy to avoid counterfeit. The procedure is carried out as follows:
- A tablespoon of mineral water is poured from the bottle and left for a couple of hours to allow the gas to escape.
- Water is poured into the nebulizer container, the device is turned on and the vapor is inhaled for 10 minutes.
- You can add a drop of eucalyptus oil to the mineral water. But only if there is no allergy to this component.
After the procedure, the remainder of the medicine is poured out and the container is washed. This manipulation must be carried out up to 4 times a day, while fresh water is always poured, from which gas has only been released.
It is advisable to use mineral water in glass bottles. In such containers, mineral water retains its properties better.
Saline solution
Inhalations with saline solution can be done for pregnant women with a runny nose caused by various reasons. This composition is absolutely safe, it does not have a negative effect on the woman and the unborn child.. Thanks to the steam of the saline solution, the nasal passages are thoroughly washed, their swelling and inflammation are reduced. Procedures can be performed 5-6 times a day. The use of such a drug does not require the consent of a doctor.
If you don’t have saline solution on hand, you can use a weak solution of kitchen salt.
Decoctions of medicinal herbs
Any medicinal herbs should be used with great caution during pregnancy.. You need to understand that when a woman is carrying a child, she becomes especially sensitive to everything. Sometimes allergies occur even in women who have not previously suffered from such pathologies.
To prepare a solution for inhalation, take a teaspoon of herbal mixture - chamomile, sage and plantain. Pour in 100 ml of hot water. Bring to a boil, then cool and filter. You can take no more than 4 ml of this decoction for one procedure. Other medicinal herbs can be used, but they must be approved by a doctor.
If the condition worsens when inhaling a decoction of herbs, such procedures are no longer recommended.
To ensure that inhalations are effective and safe, pregnant women should adhere to the following recommendations:
- A mask for inhalation with a nebulizer must be of the appropriate size.
- It is advisable to use the mask and attachments for only one person. The instructions for the nebulizer say that the nozzles can be washed with an antiseptic, but it is very difficult to achieve complete sterility.
- When performing inhalations, breathing should be even. Don't inhale or exhale too deeply.
- The duration of one procedure should not exceed 15 minutes. The course of treatment can last from 3 to 7 days. If necessary, the course can be repeated after a short break.
- For each procedure, you need to use a new dose of the medicinal solution.
For steam inhalations during pregnancy, you can use Zvezdochka balm. Dilute the balm in hot water on the tip of a knife and inhale the vapors for 5 minutes.
It is not only possible, but also necessary to carry out inhalations during pregnancy. Thanks to this procedure, it is possible to avoid the development of the disease and a number of complications.. Inhalation of medicinal solutions is completely safe for the expectant mother and child.
The weakened immunity of the expectant mother is often inferior in the fight against various colds and viral infections. In the cold season, when everyone is sick with the flu and acute respiratory infections, a pregnant woman faces the question of how to treat the disease. For a woman carrying a child, this becomes a whole problem - what if the medicine is dangerous for the baby? Of course, you should not take any pharmaceutical drugs (especially antibiotics!) without consulting an experienced specialist. But can pregnant women do inhalations? Doctors answer positively and claim that this method of treating cough and runny nose is the safest for expectant mothers.
What are inhalations?
Inhalation involves inhaling special medicinal substances that help the body fight the manifestations of acute inflammation of the respiratory tract. This method of therapy is sometimes used for colds as the main treatment, because all kinds of tablets, syrups, powders and other products, as a rule, have side effects.
During inhalation, medicinal components break down into tiny particles and are instantly absorbed into the blood. In addition to this, medicinal substances enter directly into the respiratory tract, which contributes to the rapid restoration of the mucous membrane.
Carrying out inhalations during pregnancy to get rid of a runny nose and cough has a number of advantages:
- Therapeutic components reach even the most inaccessible corners of the nasal cavity and respiratory organs;
- This procedure has a longer and milder effect compared to nasal drops and sprays;
- Inhalations do not cause adverse reactions (with the exception of individual intolerance to drugs) and have only a local effect, without creating serious stress on other organs and systems.
How to do inhalations correctly during pregnancy
To get the maximum benefit from inhalations, you must adhere to the following recommendations:
- At least 2 hours must pass between the last meal and inhalation. After the procedure, you must abstain from food for 1.5 hours;
- The frequency of the procedure directly depends on the severity of the inflammatory process and ranges from 3-6 times a day;
- The duration of inhalation should be from 3 to 10 minutes;
- It is recommended to do inhalations during pregnancy with a nebulizer - a special device that can be found in any pharmacy. The “grandmother’s” method of breathing over a saucepan should not be used due to the serious strain on the cardiovascular system;
- During the procedure, you should not be distracted by talking, TV or reading;
- The temperature of the decoction or solution used for inhalation should not exceed 40 °C;
- It is not advisable to go outside earlier than an hour after the manipulation;
- For diseases of the pharynx, trachea or bronchi, vapors should be inhaled and exhaled through the mouth, and for diseases of the nose - through the nose;
- The duration of inhalation treatment during pregnancy is about a week;
- At elevated body temperatures, as well as in cases of chronic heart or lung diseases, inhalation is prohibited.
Inhalations during pregnancy: recipes
When choosing inhalations as the main means of treatment, it is necessary to choose the right composition of the base, which directly depends on the woman’s health condition. Usually they try to get rid of cough using inhalation method. If it is dry, a collection of sage, St. John's wort, chamomile and linden blossom is suitable. Seedlings, eucalyptus, plantain, lingonberry, coltsfoot, and yarrow are great for wet coughs.
It is recommended to use essential oils for inhalation during pregnancy against ailments such as tracheitis, laryngitis, and bronchitis. Pine, eucalyptus, rose, cedar, fir or lavender oils are suitable for this case. You can also use an extract of lime, sage or orange.
Oil inhalations based on soda water are not inferior in their effectiveness. To carry out the procedure, just dissolve 2-3 tablespoons of baking soda in a liter of hot water. An alternative option is mineral water (for example, Borjomi), but you will have to first release the gas from it. 5 out of 5 (1 vote)
Colds and viruses attack our body all the time, especially hard when it is weakened. Pregnancy is precisely the period when immunity inevitably inevitably declines. Therefore, it is rare that an expectant mother can resist the onslaught of pathogenic bacteria. And no matter how hard you try to protect yourself, coughing during pregnancy overtakes many.
Letting the disease go is very dangerous - now you need to think and take care of two people. But there is nothing special to treat: the number one medicines familiar in everyday life for colds are prohibited during this period. What to do?
Inhalations for cough and runny nose during pregnancy
Inhalations are one of the most harmless methods of treating colds. They do not put additional stress on internal organs, which occurs with traditional treatment. And they not only help the sick mother, but also do not harm the unborn baby. If breathing becomes difficult or completely unbearable due to a runny nose or cough, inhalations can greatly help alleviate the condition. During pregnancy, this is especially important, because the baby should not experience a lack of oxygen or constantly shudder from the mother’s cough reflexes.
Inhalations using essential oils have recently become increasingly popular. These are oils of sage, calamus, lime, myrtle, fir, pine, eucalyptus, rosemary, cedar, lavender, rose, which are especially good for laryngitis, tracheitis and bronchitis.
How to do inhalations during pregnancy
The most important thing you should know: at high temperatures, thermal procedures are contraindicated! In this case, you can only do cold inhalations with essential oils.
If there is no fever, then any of the methods available to you will do. It is best to use an inhaler or nebulizer specially designed for this purpose. But, naturally, not every family has such a device. Don't despair - improvised means are also good. You can breathe over the spout of a kettle or make a paper cone, or simply bend over a steaming saucepan covered with a towel. Please note that inhalation can be carried out at least an hour and a half after eating.
It is very important to breathe correctly during inhalation. If you have a runny nose, breathe through your nose, when you cough - through your mouth, in both cases no longer than 10 minutes, and with the use of essential oil - a maximum of 5-7 minutes. After the procedure, it is recommended to rest for an hour or two, not drink or eat anything, and not even talk, so as not to strain the vocal cords. Going out into the cold air and smoking (which, in principle, is prohibited even without inhalation during pregnancy) is also prohibited.
Another word of caution: be careful with essential oils and herbs. Any of them can cause severe allergies, so before inhaling using them, do an intolerance test. Remember that during pregnancy the risk of developing allergic reactions increases.
In general, inhalations during pregnancy are not prohibited, but it wouldn’t hurt to be careful. It is best to consult with your doctor to be absolutely sure that the treatment you choose is safe.
Take care of yourself and your unborn baby!
Especially for- Elena Kichak
The inhalation method of treatment appeared a long time ago and still remains popular. With its help, you can achieve deeper penetration of the drug into the respiratory tract and thereby achieve greater effect. What inhalations can be done during pregnancy for rhinitis (runny nose), and what are the contraindications?
Advantages of inhalations and rules of the procedure
The main advantages of inhalations during pregnancy:
In order for the treatment method to really help with rhinitis during pregnancy, you need to follow a few fairly simple rules:
- You should consult your doctor. The main and basic rule that every woman must follow during pregnancy. The doctor, due to his experience and knowledge, can tell exactly which medicine can help and not harm the child. He will prescribe the drug taking into account the individual characteristics of the patient, her age, the presence of concomitant diseases and the risk of developing allergies;
- You need to monitor the temperature of the steam. Prolonged exposure to hot steam on a woman during pregnancy is prohibited; in addition, it can cause a burn to the mucous membrane of the upper respiratory tract and increase blood pressure;
- Eating, drinking and talking after inhalation is allowed only after an hour and a half. You should also avoid prolonged exposure to cold air.
- You must learn to breathe correctly during inhalation. That is, if the treatment is aimed at eliminating a runny nose, then the act of breathing must be done through the nose; if therapy needs to eliminate the inflammatory process in the throat area, then you need to breathe calmly through the mouth;
- For greater effect, experts recommend that pregnant women perform inhalations using a nebulizer and specialized solutions;
A combination of herbs gives a better effect when inhaled with herbs
All herbal inhalations are usually steam. In a hospital setting, specialized equipment is usually used; at home, you can get by with an ordinary saucepan or kettle. The principle of the procedure is quite simple - when the solution is heated, the liquid in the form of steam enters the mucous membrane and settles there, providing a therapeutic effect.
For coughs with difficult sputum discharge, the following herbal components may be suitable for inhalation in pregnant women:
- chamomile;
- plantain;
- marshmallow;
- Linden.
Chamomile
They can be used separately, or they can be combined with each other, achieving a quick recovery.
- licorice;
- cowberry;
- eucalyptus;
- black currant;
- yarrow.
They dilute mucus and stimulate secretion to come out. The duration of the procedure should not exceed ten minutes, the frequency of inhalations can be from one to two times a day.
To improve the taste, smell and enhance medicinal properties, you can add one or two drops of essential oils to the solutions. The best oil for coughs is:
- lavender;
- lime;
- mint;
- pink.
It is not advisable to carry out the procedure for diseases of the heart and blood vessels.
Pregnant women are contraindicated inhalations for rhinitis with the addition of:
- iodine;
- basil oil;
- cedar oil;
- rosemary oil;
- cypress and nightshade oil.
Inhalations with saline solution
The saline solution is a 0.9% sodium chloride solution. When used during inhalation, the functional activity of the nasal mucosa is restored, swelling of the soft tissues disappears and airway patency improves.
I usually use saline solution in combination with essential oils and plant juices. Below are examples of medicines based on salted water.
Preparation of saline solution for inhalation
Recipe No. 1. One teaspoon of table salt must be dissolved in 250 ml of boiled water. Next, you need to add fifteen drops of sea buckthorn oil to the glass. The resulting mixture must be heated to seventy degrees Celsius, poured into an inhaler or left in a pan. Carry out the procedure immediately for ten minutes. The used product is discarded and not reused.
Recipe No. 2 . Using the same principle, you need to mix boiled water, table salt and Kalanchoe juice. It is worth noting that this plant is irritating and causes a prolonged cough. You should also remember that Kalanchoe often causes allergies, so you should consult your doctor. The solution for inhalation must be heated to fifty degrees, otherwise the product loses almost all of its therapeutic effect.
Inhalation over potatoes
Inhalations during pregnancy with potatoes
If a runny nose often bothers a pregnant woman, and many herbal-based medications do not help or are simply prohibited by the doctor, you can remember my grandmother’s elementary method - breathing over potatoes.
For inhalation, you need to boil four medium-sized potatoes; there is no need to peel the vegetable. After it becomes soft and completely cooked, drain the water and mash the potatoes as quickly as possible. Next, the pregnant woman should bow her head, cover herself and the pan with a towel and inhale the steam for fifteen minutes.
The benefit of this method is explained by the presence in the vegetable of a high concentration of phytoncides - compounds that have a detrimental effect on pathogenic microflora.
Inhalation must be carried out in accordance with the above rules.
Inhalation with Miramistin
Release form of the drug Miramistin
This kind of inhalation is usually recommended for pregnant women during an exacerbation of a chronic inflammatory process in the respiratory system or in the case of a rapidly developing disease (rhinitis, pharyngitis, bronchitis). The drug Miramistin has a bactericidal effect, stimulates local defense and thereby relieves the severity of symptoms.
To carry out the procedure, you need to consider the following points:
- for inhalation you need an ultrasonic nebulizer;
- the drug is not diluted with water, but is poured into the apparatus in its original form;
- The duration of inhalation in pregnant women should not last more than fifteen minutes.
If you don’t have a nebulizer, you can get by with gauze swabs soaked in the medicine, but you need to understand that this way you can damage the nasal mucosa, and the effect of the procedure will be minimal.
The instructions for Miramistin indicate the safety of using the drug during pregnancy and lactation, since it acts locally and is not absorbed into the blood. Sometimes itching and burning may occur, but the discomfort usually goes away after half an hour.
Some experts talk about some restrictions on the use of Miramistin in the first trimester of pregnancy, since the bodies of women and children are very sensitive to external influences, and any drug cannot provide a 100% guarantee of harmlessness.
Inhalation with a nebulizer during pregnancy
There are several types of nebulizers:
- steam;
- ultrasonic;
- compressor
The procedure is quite simple:
- Inhalation is done an hour and a half after eating; it is not recommended to use drugs that dilute sputum;
- If you have nasal congestion due to rhinitis, you should briefly rinse the nasal cavity with a weak solution of table salt;
- Filling the device should be done with a disposable sterile syringe, hands should also be clean;
- Pharmaceutical solutions must be stored in closed packaging;
- It is prohibited to use tap water for inhalation; it can be replaced with mineral water or boiled water;
- At the end of the procedure, all parts of the device must be thoroughly washed and treated with a disinfectant solution.
All drugs that can be used for inhalation by pregnant women are presented in the table.
It is worth noting that the listed drugs have their own contraindications and side effects. Nebulizer solutions are best used in second and third trimester of pregnancy, not earlier.
| Expectorants | Antiseptics | Anti-inflammatory medications | Antihistamines | Bronchodilating drugs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ambrobene | Furacilin | Malavit | Atrovent | Cromohexal |
| Mukaltin | Miramistin | Eucalyptus esters | Ventolin | Pulmicort |
| Lazolvan | Chlorophyllipt | Propolis | Berotek | |
| Pertussin | Fluimucil | Rotokan | Berodual | |
| Borjomi water | ||||
| Water Narzan |
Expectant mothers get sick no less often than other people. But most medications are contraindicated for them. What to do? How to treat?
Often pregnant women with acute respiratory diseases are recommended to inhale with saline solution. But does this make sense, and will such a procedure do any harm?
What is saline solution
Physiological solutions are liquids in which a living cell finds conditions close to normal (physiological). The ratio of salts and other components in them is close to that in the human body. In everyday life, saline usually means a 0.9% aqueous solution of sodium chloride (NaCl). It is this that is usually used for intravenous administration during dehydration, as a detoxification agent, and for diluting medications. It can also be used to rinse contact lenses and in rare cases as a blood substitute.
The saline solution is prepared in the laboratory by mixing salt with distilled water. Then it is poured into sterile containers. You can prepare such a solution at home, but then no one can guarantee its purity and quality. Therefore, when treating, it is better to use a pharmaceutical drug, especially since it is inexpensive.
Inhalations for expectant mothers and saline solution
Saline solution is an absolutely safe liquid for the body, so inhalation with it is not prohibited during pregnancy. They definitely won’t harm the baby, but they will help the mother relieve a dry cough. This applies to correctly performed steam inhalations. They can be done in the classic way, by lowering your face over a saucepan of hot liquid, or using a steam inhaler.
Warm steam helps with the accumulation of dry mucus in the upper respiratory tract. It moisturizes and is easily removed when coughing and blowing your nose. But we must take into account that the volume of mucus will also increase, so coughing will be difficult and there will be much more phlegm. Breathing may also become difficult due to large amounts of mucus in the nasal passages.
Inhalations should be used if a woman is forced to stay in a room with low humidity, which leads to drying of the sputum. For example, most homes are dry in winter due to the use of heating appliances. In such a situation, saline solution is the optimal solution. It is not recommended to use various herbal preparations or essential oils, since it is difficult to predict the reaction of the pregnant body to them.
Inhalations with saline solution in a nebulizer
The nebulizer is a relatively new invention. It turns the liquid into an aerosol or a kind of fog and allows it to penetrate into the most remote corners of the respiratory tract and even into the lungs. Initially, this drug was intended exclusively for the treatment of pneumonia, bronchial asthma and other complex diseases, since it made it possible to deliver the medicine to the lungs even with narrowed bronchi. But advertising has turned it into an indispensable remedy for any acute respiratory infection.
In fact, with banal ARVI, it accumulates only in the upper respiratory tract and there is no need to deliver anything to the lower respiratory tract. It is much more important to try to constantly breathe cool, moist air, get more rest and drink enough fluids. With a simple uncomplicated acute respiratory infection, excess water in the alveoli, like any herbal decoctions or essential oils, is simply not needed.
A nebulizer is a real salvation if you need to deliver medications to the lungs during bronchial obstruction. But for ARVI, a regular humidifier is much more useful.
How to prepare saline solution at home
Saline solution is sold at any pharmacy and is inexpensive. But, if you can’t buy it, you can prepare the solution at home. To do this, you need to take a liter of water and nine grams of pure table salt. This is about a small heaped teaspoon, but it would be safer to weigh everything on a kitchen scale.
To prepare saline solution, it is better to use filtered water. First you need to boil it and let it cool a little. Add salt to warm water so it will dissolve faster.
After cooling, the prepared saline solution is stored in the refrigerator. It must be borne in mind that even if all precautions are taken, we cannot be sure of the sterility of the finished product. Therefore, you can store it in the refrigerator for no more than a day. After this, it can be used for steam inhalation only after boiling.
What other inhalations can be done for pregnant women?
It is better for expectant mothers not to take unnecessary risks and not to inhale with anything other than clean water or saline solution. This is especially true for procedures performed using a nebulizer. Essential oils or other substances that enter the bronchi and lungs will do nothing to help with the accumulation of mucus in the upper respiratory tract, but they may well cause allergies or bronchospasm.
If the expectant mother wants to do a simple inhalation over steam, it is quite possible to add a little to the water. But only on the condition that you have done this before without negative consequences, and the smell of herbs does not cause nausea, as often happens during pregnancy. The light aroma of chamomile, calendula or linden is unlikely to dramatically help with a cough, but it will make inhalation more pleasant.
It is very important to control the temperature of the inhaled steam and not to overdo it so as not to cause burns to the mucous membranes.
No matter how tempting the opportunity to get rid of a cough with home inhalations may seem, the expectant mother should definitely visit a doctor. Only a doctor can decide what is safe and what is not and recommend treatment.