Is it okay for a nursing mom to drink ibuprofen?

Lactation is a special period in a woman's life, when it is necessary to monitor nutrition and medication intake no less than during pregnancy, because unwanted and even dangerous components for the baby can get into the milk. However, some painful conditions cannot be left untreated either. In many cases - for example, if you need to eliminate pain, lower the temperature - non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs come to the rescue. In particular, the well-known drug Ibuprofen is quite acceptable for use during breastfeeding. But there are some nuances that every nursing mother should know about.

Can Ibuprofen be used while breastfeeding?

Not all Ibuprofen instructions state that the drug can be used by lactating women. This is not because such use is prohibited, but because no studies have been conducted on this issue, and the manufacturer does not want to take responsibility for the safety of taking Ibuprofen during lactation.

However, medical practice shows that Ibuprofen can be used during breastfeeding, since the active component of the drug penetrates into the mother's milk in extremely small quantities.

If you turn to some scientific sources, you can easily find information that Ibuprofen is the most preferred drug among all existing analgesics and antipyretics. [ 1 ] In most countries of the world, this drug is recognized as absolutely safe and compatible with breastfeeding. Naturally, it should not be taken randomly, but strictly according to indications and only after consulting a doctor. If Ibuprofen is taken incorrectly or unjustifiably, unforeseen consequences may occur, and in this case, there is no point in talking about the safety of the drug. Self-medication with medications is unacceptable and dangerous - both for a nursing mother and for her baby.

Two studies attempted to measure ibuprofen in milk. In the first, the patient dose was 400 mg twice daily, while in the second study, the dose was 400 mg every 6 hours in 12 patients. In both studies, ibuprofen was not detected in breast milk (<0.5 and 1 mg/L, respectively). [ 2 ], [ 3 ]

A later study using a more sensitive assay detected ibuprofen in the breast milk of one woman who took 6 x 400 mg oral doses over 42.5 hours. Milk ibuprofen levels of 13 μg/L were detected 30 minutes after the first dose. The peak level was 180 μg/L approximately 4 hours after the third dose and 20.5 hours after the first dose. The authors calculated that the infant would receive approximately 17 μg/kg per day (100 μg per day) from a maternal dose of approximately 1.2 g per day. This dose is 0.0008% of the maternal weight-adjusted dosage [ 4 ] and 0.06% of the commonly used pediatric dose of 30 mg/kg per day (10 mg/kg every 8 hours).

Indications Ibuprofen

A lactating woman is not immune to any kind of ailments, pain, etc. In such situations, it is allowed to use medications that do not pose a danger to the baby - during their use there is no need to stop breastfeeding, since the quality and composition of milk does not change.

Ibuprofen during breastfeeding is indicated for women with colds, to eliminate headaches or muscle pain. It has been proven that during breastfeeding the proportion of Ibuprofen entering milk is less than 0.06%, so its negative impact on the baby is practically eliminated.

There are at least 23 cases reported in the literature in which infants (age not specified) were breastfed while their mothers were taking ibuprofen, with no adverse effects reported.[ 5 ]

Ibuprofen can improve the well-being of a nursing mother in the following painful conditions:

• heat, fever, elevated temperature;
• pain syndrome (headache, toothache, joint pain, muscle pain, etc.);
• inflammatory processes (pharyngitis, laryngitis, arthritis, myositis);
• painful PMS and the beginning of the menstrual cycle.

If Ibuprofen does not provide relief within three days of starting treatment with the drug, you should visit a doctor to adjust the treatment regimen.

For a full list of indications, please read the full instructions for Ibuprofen. [ 6 ]

Ibuprofen for headaches while breastfeeding

Nursing mothers experience pain no less often than other women, and sometimes more often. This is due to constant fatigue, lack of sleep, overwork, because caring for a baby, although pleasant, is sometimes very difficult. Ibuprofen is mainly used for acute conditions such as fever or headaches, especially tension headaches. [ 7 ], [ 8 ]

Of course, when you have a headache, you shouldn't always rush to take pills: sometimes simple rest and sleep work better than any painkiller. But in some cases, you still have to take pills - and here Ibuprofen can come to the rescue. This medication is considered relatively safe during breastfeeding. Why "relatively"? Because a single dose of the drug really won't harm the baby. There won't be any problems even after two forced doses. But if you take pills daily or too often, you'll still have to stop lactating and switch the baby to formula.

Ibuprofen is inexpensive, has a short list of contraindications and side effects, and therefore can be used for one-time relief of headaches during breastfeeding.

Ibuprofen for fever while breastfeeding

During lactation, a woman may catch a cold or flu, or get a sore throat. In any of these cases, you should see a doctor to quickly and effectively deal with the disease. But what if a visit to the doctor is scheduled for the next day, and a high temperature is already bothering you today? You can take an Ibuprofen tablet: in a minimal dosage, it can stabilize the temperature and will not harm the baby. For example, you can take up to 200 mg of the drug to normalize the temperature.

But you can't take the medicine constantly or "knock down" a temperature that has been rising for more than 3 days in a row. In such a situation, you can't do without medical help.

Ibuprofen is taken immediately after feeding the baby. In this situation, the penetration of the drug into the baby's body is practically reduced to zero. The tablets successfully reduce the temperature associated with viral and bacterial infections, and are also recommended as a painkiller and antipyretic for mastitis and lactostasis.

Ibuprofen is a common medication that helps with high fever. But nursing mothers should know that this symptom is not a reason to refuse to breastfeed their child: when the mother has a high temperature, her milk does not change its properties and does not become less qualitative. And antipyretic drugs are taken exclusively to alleviate the well-being of the sick woman. [ 9 ]

Ibuprofen for lactostasis

Lactostasis is a common problem during breastfeeding, when a woman needs help as quickly as possible, because the pain during lactostasis is really very intense. What do doctors advise about this?

• Apply the baby to the breast frequently, ensuring that the nipple is properly latched on.
• Apply a cold compress after feeding and after each pumping.
• Do a kneading massage of the affected gland.
• Take a warm shower before feeding (if there is no fever or signs of purulent mastitis).
• Apply fresh cabbage leaves to the area of the cones.
• Take Ibuprofen if necessary to relieve pain and stabilize local temperature reaction.

In case of general increase in temperature, Ibuprofen is recommended to be taken no earlier than after reaching the temperature marks of 38-38.5°C. As a rule, no side effects in relation to the child are observed after taking the drug. There is no need to stop breastfeeding.

Ibuprofen for toothache while breastfeeding

Toothache during breastfeeding requires a mandatory consultation with a dentist. But sometimes it is necessary to relieve the symptom even before visiting a doctor. You can try rinsing your mouth with a warm solution of baking soda. If this does not help, you will have to take a painkiller.

Ibuprofen is considered a good medicine compatible with breastfeeding. It relieves even severe toothache, reduces inflammation, and is also inexpensive and freely available in every pharmacy. Of course, there are special tablets for toothache - for example, Actasulide or Ketorol. However, these drugs are not suitable for nursing women due to the risk of harm to the child's health. Dentists often use ibuprofen and other NSAIDs to treat acute and chronic orofacial pain. A dose of 400 mg of ibuprofen provides effective analgesia to control postoperative pain after surgery.

Ibuprofen is an effective remedy for relieving toothache and partly the inflammatory process. But it must be used strictly following the instructions and doctor's instructions, taking the minimum possible amount of the drug. [ 10 ]

Release form

Ibuprofen is an active ingredient in many medications. It belongs to the category of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and can be included in the composition of external ointments, as well as tablets, suppositories, suspensions and syrups. For example, one of the popular children's products - Nurofen - is also represented by the active Ibuprofen. It is this ingredient that is approved by doctors for normalizing temperature, inhibiting inflammation processes, and relieving pain of various origins. Preparations with Ibuprofen are approved for use even in pediatrics: they are prescribed to infants starting from 3 months of age.

The tablets contain 200 or 400 mg of Ibuprofen, and additional components are starch, povidone, magnesium stearate, talc, lactose, silicon dioxide.

The syrup or suspension contains Ibuprofen 20 mg/1 ml, and the auxiliary components are glycerin, citric acid, citrate, saccharinate and sodium chloride, as well as flavorings and fillers.

Rectal suppositories contain 60 mg Ibuprofen.

Dosing and administration

When breastfeeding, the maximum daily dose of Ibuprofen is limited to 800 mg. However, doctors advise taking a smaller amount of the drug if possible - for example, 200 mg twice a day. Increasing the dosage should always be agreed with the doctor.

The time interval between Ibuprofen doses should be at least 4 hours. It is advisable to take both tablets and syrup or suspension immediately after the main meal: this will minimize the likelihood of side effects.

If a woman doubts the absolute safety of Ibuprofen during breastfeeding, then the medication can be taken as follows. According to the kinetic properties, the maximum content of the active portion of the drug in the bloodstream is detected in the period of 30 minutes to 2 hours after taking Ibuprofen. Therefore, the baby should be fed immediately before taking the medicine, and during the specified period, breastfeeding should be avoided. This approach will allow the nursing mother to successfully get rid of painful symptoms and not worry about the possibility of harm to the child.

Contraindications

Before taking Ibuprofen while breastfeeding, a woman should read the instructions completely and familiarize herself with the list of contraindications. For example, this medication should not be taken:

• in decompensated cardiovascular pathologies;
• in acute enterocolitis, exacerbation of chronic colitis;
• for gastritis, gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer;
• in case of renal and/or hepatic insufficiency;
• in case of allergy and hypersensitivity to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

If during treatment with Ibuprofen a nursing woman experiences abdominal pain, vomiting, profuse loose stools, then she should consult a doctor about the possibility of further taking the medication. To avoid some negative effects, it is recommended to take Ibuprofen tablets during meals.

Analogues

In some cases, it may be necessary to replace Ibuprofen with another similar medication during breastfeeding. This may happen for various reasons: some are not satisfied with the price, and some simply do not want to run to the pharmacy again. Of course, when looking for an analogue, it is best to consult with the doctor who prescribed Ibuprofen.

Analogues can be complete (structural, with the same active component) and partial (similar in action, but with a different active substance)

It is no secret that in any pharmacy chain you can find several versions of the same medication, presented under different names. Ibuprofen is no exception: this drug is “hidden” under such well-known names as Ibufen, Advil, Suprafen, Nurofen, Dolgit, Ibunorm, Next, Artrokam, etc. But when choosing a product, you should pay attention not only to the similarity of the composition, but also to its medicinal form. For example, if the doctor advised taking the children's version of Ibuprofen during breastfeeding, then you need to look for a replacement among pediatric drugs. In this situation, the optimal replacement will be Nurofen - this drug is several times more expensive than domestic Ibuprofen, but has proven safety and effectiveness - after all, it is produced by the pharmaceutical company that once developed this drug. Nurofen is approved for use in pediatric practice, it is prescribed even to infants.

Another absolutely safe replacement is considered to be Ibuprofen for children or junior. These drugs do not accumulate in the body, are completely eliminated from the body within 24 hours, providing a pronounced analgesic and anti-inflammatory effect for headaches, toothaches, dysmenorrhea, neuralgia, back and joint pain, as well as the first symptoms of a cold and acute respiratory viral infection.

If you need to quickly and safely normalize body temperature, then instead of Ibuprofen you can use Paracetamol or its structural analogues Anapiron, Infulgan, Milistan, Panadol, Piaron, Efferalgan. These medications will help to cope not only with high temperature, but also relieve mild headaches, neuralgia, and alleviate the condition with algomenorrhea.

For those who cannot choose between Ibuprofen and Paracetamol, there is a combination drug called Ibuclin. [ 11 ] Research has shown that taking Ibuprofen and Paracetamol at the same time. [ 12 ] provides a significantly better analgesic effect than taking these drugs separately. One Ibuclin tablet successfully combines 400 mg of Ibuprofen and 325 mg of Paracetamol. The drug is quite effective, but the dosage of active substances in it is still quite high: the tablet itself is not divided, since it has a special film coating. Therefore, you should not take it on your own: you need to consult a doctor in advance.

Reviews

Judging by numerous reviews, the correct use of Ibuprofen does not have a negative effect on the breastfeeding process. It is advisable to take the medication for as short a course as possible, in the minimum effective dosage. You should not take Ibuprofen regularly for more than five to seven days in a row. If any unpleasant symptoms appear, it is better to consult a doctor and replace the drug or adjust the dosage.

Because of its extremely low excretion in breast milk, short half-life, and safe use in infants at doses significantly higher than those excreted in breast milk, ibuprofen is the preferred choice as an analgesic or anti-inflammatory agent in nursing mothers.

In general, Ibuprofen is really safe during breastfeeding and helps relieve pain of various etiologies, accelerate microcirculation, and reduce the intensity of the inflammatory reaction. The indicated properties of the drug can be used to relieve pain in myalgia and bursitis, headaches and teeth, neuralgia and migraines, hematomas and tendovaginitis. In addition, the drug gently stabilizes temperature readings in viral infections, alleviates the condition in sinusitis, pharyngitis, tonsillitis, laryngitis.