Is it possible to drink activated charcoal during pregnancy?

Digestive problems are a common problem among pregnant women. Its causes are physiological changes in the body of the expectant mother, diseases, as well as diet.

Taking medications, in particular activated carbon, helps correct the situation. This is a sorbent that binds and removes toxic compounds.

Action of activated carbon

Activated carbon is an organic substance with a porous structure. It is made from natural raw materials based on different types of coal: charcoal, stone, oil, using special processing. The mechanism of its action is based on the processes of oxidation and adsorption.

Coal is available in the form of black tablets . Thanks to its unique porous structure, it absorbs harmful substances from the intestines. Its main advantages are:

• removal of toxic metabolites and other dangerous compounds;
• neutralization of microorganisms and bacteria;
• providing assistance in cases of poisoning and intoxication

The drug helps to cope with the effects of heavy metal salts, poisonous and toxic substances, phenols, and alkaloids. The sorbent must certainly be part of the home first aid kit.

Activated carbon helps in the treatment of many diseases . When using it, you need to know about the indications and side effects of the drug, and also follow the dosage.

What does activated carbon packaging look like?

Instructions for safe use

The instructions for using activated carbon are described in the annotation for the medication, but it does not take into account the characteristics of the female body during pregnancy. Therefore, the duration of the therapeutic course and the specific regimen of use must be determined by the attending physician. The standard amount of the drug is determined based on the patient’s body weight: one tablet is taken per 10 kilograms of weight. The doctor calculates a more accurate one-time and permissible maximum daily dosage, as well as the dosage regimen .

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The dosage of coal is calculated based on weight, and the doctor prescribes a treatment regimen based on the indications.

Table: features of taking pills depending on the diagnosis

It is important to understand that in case of acute poisoning, the expectant mother should under no circumstances self-medicate. In some cases, activated carbon will not be effective enough, since it simply will not be able to relieve intoxication as quickly as necessary so that the toxins do not poison the baby . Calling a doctor in such a situation is mandatory .

This condition poses a serious danger to women and children because:

• dehydration begins;
• toxic agents penetrate the bloodstream and reach the fetus through the placenta;
• The hormone oxytocin is released, which causes increased contractions of the uterus, which threatens miscarriage.

At the first symptoms of food poisoning (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever), you should immediately call an ambulance.

If the course of treatment lasts up to 2 weeks, it is necessary to restore normal intestinal microflora. In this case, the doctor will advise you to adjust your diet or prescribe probiotic preparations that contain beneficial lacto- and bifidobacteria.

Can activated charcoal be used by pregnant women?

Charcoal tablets, familiar to many since childhood and considered absolutely safe, are often used without consulting a doctor. But expectant mothers should be careful when taking any medications, including activated carbon. Uncontrolled use can lead to serious health problems for the mother and fetus.

Activated carbon does not harm the baby in the womb . The components included in its composition are not absorbed into the blood. Therefore, they cannot penetrate the placenta and enter the fetus’s body.

The effect of the pills only affects the well-being of the expectant mother.

• During pregnancy, it is not prohibited to drink activated carbon. However, this can only be done on the advice of a specialist and in compliance with the permissible dosage.
• The sorbent drug helps cope with toxins and poisons, fight heartburn, bloating and abdominal pain, and the consequences of allergic reactions.

Activated carbon in early pregnancy

In the first trimester of pregnancy, all organs of the fetus are formed. At the same time, activated carbon is usually prescribed to expectant mothers without fear. It is not capable of having an adverse effect on the processes occurring in the baby’s body. And he can help a pregnant woman.

The most common reason for prescribing activated charcoal in the initial stages of pregnancy is digestive problems, namely bloating and colic.

• Their occurrence is explained by the restructuring of the female body during the period of bearing a child. The level of progesterone increases, which is needed to reduce the tone of smooth muscles, reduce the likelihood of a sharp contraction of the uterine muscles and, ultimately, to prevent miscarriage and preserve the fetus.
• An increase in the amount of progesterone in the body affects the functioning of the digestive system. Intestinal motility decreases, which causes bloating due to intestinal gas pollution, as well as constipation.

The latter are a contraindication for the use of activated carbon. It is not recommended to abuse this drug in early pregnancy.

Activated carbon in later stages

In the second half of pregnancy, charcoal tablets are mainly prescribed for heartburn. It occurs as a result of the growing uterus pressing on the stomach, the contents of which enter the esophagus.

The expectant mother suffers from a burning sensation. Activated charcoal absorbs acids that irritate the esophagus, providing relief immediately after taking it .

• Heartburn during pregnancy disappears before childbirth, when the stomach drops. But at the same time, problems with the functioning of the intestines may appear: constipation, colic. In later stages, charcoal is used with great caution and only if the expectant mother has normal stools.
• The drug is taken during pregnancy and for poisoning. It effectively binds and removes toxic substances from the body of the expectant mother, relieves nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.
• Activated carbon helps in the treatment and prevention of allergies . Taking the sorbent helps cleanse the blood of toxins, helps restore the body's defenses and relieve allergy symptoms: itching, redness of the skin.

Early use of coal

The medicine is safe for health, so during early pregnancy it can be safely taken, unlike other medications. Indeed, in the first weeks after conception, the formation of the child’s vital organs occurs. Coal does not belong to these types of medicinal products - most doctors prescribe it for pregnant women, since its composition alleviates many symptoms of toxicosis:

• vomiting;
• nausea that occurs repeatedly;
• irregular bowel movements;
• gas formation.

Can pregnant women use activated charcoal for diarrhea? Yes - in addition to eliminating the symptoms of toxicosis, the medicine normalizes intestinal function,

and also removes excess water from the body, because it is considered the main “initiator” of the appearance of loose stools.

How to take activated charcoal

Expectant mothers must strictly adhere to the dosage of the medication. In case of poisoning, the dose is calculated based on the person’s body weight. For every 10 kg , 1 tablet is prescribed .

If colic and gas occur, you can drink 2 grams of the drug 1.5 hours after eating. All cases of use of the medicine require consultation with a doctor.

In addition, it is worth considering that other drugs, the effect of which begins after absorption into the blood, can be taken 3 hours before taking charcoal, or 3 hours after consuming it.

When is it prohibited to take the drug?

The medication has contraindications during pregnancy

Therefore, it is prohibited to independently treat the pathological condition. Self-medication can cause negative health consequences.

Contraindications to taking the medicine during pregnancy:

• the woman has peptic ulcers of the stomach or other digestive organs;
• bleeding observed in the stomach;
• colitis of nonspecific type.

Important!

It is not recommended to take the medicine if the patient is intolerant to the components of the drug.
Useful video: is it possible to use activated carbon during pregnancy?

Side effects of activated carbon

The sorbent removes both harmful and some beneficial substances from the body. For this reason, long-term use can lead to:

• constipation;
• lack of vitamins;
• delay in fetal development due to a deficiency of fats and protein compounds in the pregnant woman’s body.

In order to prevent health problems for the expectant mother and her baby, it is necessary to follow the dosage of activated carbon recommended by the doctor, as well as additionally consume vitamin and mineral complexes for pregnant women and fermented milk products, which are useful for maintaining normal intestinal microflora.

Author: Sergey Kovalev, doctor, especially for umkamama.ru

Adverse reactions

The maximum duration of treatment with natural coal is two weeks. With longer use, the absorption process of the gastrointestinal tract is disrupted. As a result, the body does not receive the required amount of protein, fats, vitamins and microelements.

A less significant side effect is a change in the color of the stool. It turns black. If this is critical for a woman, she is prescribed white charcoal . It does not color the stool, but has a similar effect on the body.

In some cases, long-term use of activated charcoal causes constipation. This phenomenon goes away on its own over time after the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract is restored. Eating dairy products will help speed up the rehabilitation process.

Activated carbon is an effective remedy that can be used during pregnancy. But it is always easier to prevent a problem than to fix it. To do this, pregnant women are advised to monitor the freshness of food , wash their hands more often and avoid junk food.

Contraindications and side effects from the instructions

Despite the fact that activated carbon is a widely used drug, there are cases when its use is prohibited:

• ulcerative lesions of the gastric and duodenal mucosa;
• intestinal atony - decreased or complete absence of gastrointestinal motility;
• bleeding in the stomach and intestines;
• individual intolerance to the components of the drug.

Constipation is a common side effect when taking charcoal. Since this is a common occurrence during pregnancy, if the situation worsens, it is necessary to consult a doctor who will select a different sorbent. It is also possible that the stool may turn black. And with individual sensitivity, a woman may feel nausea or the urge to vomit. In this case, use of the drug should be stopped.

It is not recommended to use activated carbon together with other medications, since its adsorbing effect will also be directed at the substances of other medications that a woman takes during pregnancy. The recommended interval between taking charcoal and all other medications is at least two hours .

Can white charcoal be used during pregnancy?

Much also remains unknown regarding white coal or adsorbent. Manufacturers, when advertising the drug, emphasize that this type of coal is much better than black. It does not harm either the expectant mother or the child. The shape is normal, round. The only thing remarkable about the drug is its white color , which is achieved by adding starch to it.

Cellulose and silicon dioxide act as active substances. Research has proven that only safe, absolutely environmentally friendly substances that are not capable of negatively affecting humans are used in the production of the medicine.

The key difference between this drug is that it acts exclusively on harmful components - poisons and toxins that enter the body of the expectant mother. You will need to take a couple of tablets several times a day. This will make it possible to get rid of symptoms of heartburn, digestive tract disorders, poisoning and many other problems. The drug should not be taken with water. The tablets need to be sucked until they completely dissolve in the mouth.

The drug can be used by absolutely everyone, since it has no contraindications as such. However, experts often argue that the effect of cellulose on the body of a pregnant woman has not yet been studied, therefore ordinary activated carbon is still shown in an interesting position. Be that as it may, you need to choose sorbents, like other medications, responsibly .

Intestinal disorders

Activated carbon is a kind of first aid, because it normalizes the digestive system and eliminates the symptoms of intestinal disorder (poisoning).

When a woman registers with a antenatal clinic for pregnancy, the doctor must talk with her about how to eat, what can be eaten, and what cannot be eaten. Proper nutrition prevents the development of all kinds of diseases and guarantees a successful pregnancy at all its stages.

But there are often cases when poisoning occurs due to the low activity of produced enzymes. The use of activated carbon in this situation will be appropriate, since it will help absorb substances that cause poisoning.

Without a doctor’s recommendation, it is strictly forbidden to use activated carbon yourself, in particular in case of severe poisoning. Only a qualified gastroenterologist can correctly prescribe a course of treatment.

The rule of prior consultation with a specialist applies to the use of any medications during pregnancy.

Flatulence, constipation, heartburn, toxicosis

Activated charcoal absorbs excess gases produced in the intestines, but it is only used when there is no constipation. If the drug is taken incorrectly, complications such as intestinal obstruction may develop.

The situation is completely different with the use of activated carbon for increased gas formation in combination with diarrhea. In this case, its use is completely justified and safe.

With early or late toxicosis, pregnant women often drink activated charcoal and notice an improvement in their well-being. This is because such treatment significantly reduces the load on the liver and kidneys of the expectant mother.

Heartburn is very difficult for pregnant women. This pathological manifestation occurs more often in late pregnancy and is due to the fact that the uterus, which is increasingly increasing in size, begins to put pressure on the digestive organs. As a result, the contents of the stomach (food and gastric juice) enter the esophagus and begin to irritate it. Charcoal neutralizes acid, which reduces the symptoms of heartburn.