Acute bronchitis during pregnancy

THE complications can present at different levels during pregnancy:

• Because of cough, the future mother may lack oxygen, which can be very dangerous for the baby.

• If the fever persists in association with cough, you should consult a doctor because these symptoms are more reminiscent of pneumonia, and this disease requires stronger medications which are not recommended during pregnancy. These could affect the child's proper development.

• One of the symptoms of acute bronchitis is loss of appetite. For a pregnant woman, this is one of the most worrying symptoms for her baby. If she does not eat enough and correctly, the child risks lacking nutrients, which can have irreversible consequences for the child. We remember that food is the main factor in the development of the baby.

• Acute bronchitis can lead to fever, if the mother-to-be does not drink enough fluids, she risks dehydration. This phenomenon could cause contractions and, therefore, lead to premature delivery.

THE main symptom of acute bronchitis is cough. It is first of all a cough which is dry and which becomes more and more oily as the days go by.

Normally, the aim of treating a dry cough is to transform it into a wet cough and thus evacuate microbes more easily and unblock the bronchi. But in the case of pregnancy, dry cough will only be treated if it is really bothersome for the mother-to-be and could possibly prevent her from breathing properly.
However, after a few days, acute bronchitis transforms the dry cough into a wet cough. The latter is generally not as much of a danger to a normal person as during pregnancy. On the contrary, it helps to evacuate microbes. It is not treated if it is not of infectious origin.

During pregnancy, we only decide to take measures against cough in certain specific cases: it must be persistent, really disabling, whether it attacks the future mother at bedtime or in the middle of the night, thus preventing her from resting properly and therefore causing too much fatigue for a pregnant woman. And finally, if the cough really threatens the good progress of the pregnancy by at risk of premature birth, it will be processed.

Unfortunately, the big problem that arises during pregnancy is the fact that future mothers are deprived of many medications and are therefore forced to find intermediate solutions to treat themselves.

We understood it well, the medical treatments are not recommended during pregnancy and breastfeeding (yes, even after being born, baby must always breastfeed so you have to remain vigilant, we love the little one, but it's not always easy!)

Other possibilities are to be favored to treat acute bronchitis. Let's explain: instead of dealing with the symptoms directly, we suggest you focus on the causes of the symptoms. So to calm your cough, it is better to opt for natural remedies. We suggest some foods that could help you:

• The onion: surprising but true! It is anti-inflammatory, anti-infectious and thins the mucus, which allows it to be evacuated more easily and therefore to evacuate microbes and improve breathing. In addition, onion contains vitamin C, which helps fight against all diseases in general.
• Honey : it has become a famous grandmother's remedy. The sugar contained in honey softens the throat and helps reduce coughing.
• Herbal teas
• Homeopathy

If you want to know more about natural remedies for acute bronchitis, click here.

In conclusion, acute bronchitis does not present not a real danger for future mothers. However, we must remain particularly vigilant regarding the development of symptoms in order to be able to react quickly. The main things to watch out for are: cough, fever, fatigue and lack of appetite.