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Aspirin and Pregnancy
In 1990 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued the following warning about
aspirin use during pregnancy: "It is especially important not to use aspirin
during the last three months of pregnancy, unless specifically directed to do so by a
physician because it may cause problems in the unborn child or complications during
delivery."
Aspirin is listed on the California Environmental Protection Agency (CAL/EPA)
Proposition 65 list of developmental toxins (CAL/EPA
Proposition 65 List). A developmental toxin is a substance that an expert group
of scientists found sufficient evidence of possible harm to unborn children. The FDA
warning is included in the CAL/EPA listing.
Aspirin and Breast Feeding
Aspirin is transferred to breast milk and it is estimated that a nursing baby receives
about 4-8% of the mother’s dose (WHO 1988). Continued exposure to small doses of
aspirin may be harmful to babies because aspirin tends to build up in their bodies
(Findlay et al. 1981). In some countries, nursing woman are advised against aspirin use
because of the possible development of Reye’s Syndrome in their babies (WHO 1988).
Reye’s Syndrome is a rare condition that affects the brain and liver and is most
often observed in children given aspirin during a viral illness (National Reye's Syndrome Foundation).
Because sufficient information is not available to accurately determine the extent of
aspirin accumulation in babies and the resulting health outcomes, the World Health
Organization (WHO) Working Group on Human Lactation considers aspirin intake by nursing
mothers as unsafe (WHO 1988).
References
Iannucci L. The Perplexities of Pregnancy. FDA. http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/CONSUMER/CON00033.html.
Findlay JWA, DeAngelis RL, Kearney MF, Welch RM, Findlay JM: Analgesic drugs breast
milk and plasma. Clin Pharmacol Ther 29:625-33, 1981.
The WHO Working Group, Bennet PN (ed): Drugs and Human Lactation. Elsevier, Amsterdam,
New York, Oxford, 1988. pp. 325-6.
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This site last updated:
06/24/03
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