Yes, taking paracetamol pregnant has consequences: what? 2026

Taking medication during pregnancy is, in most cases, totally contradictory. The effect that drugs have on the development of the baby is something that has yet to be assessed, although the majority of studies that have been carried out on this topic have not left a positive result. However, in some cases and due to certain pathologies suffered by the mother, it is necessary to continue the medication, although always closely monitored by the specialist. However, one of those medications that seem to be more beneficial during pregnancy is paracetamol.

Taking paracetamol during pregnancy reduces the number of your daughter's eggs

However, recent research is discovering the adverse effects it can cause in the baby, especially because it affects neuronal development, increasing the risk of suffering from autism or hyperactivity. Now, in addition, it has been proven that the use of paracetamol during pregnancy directly affects the fertility of the baby, as we announced weeks ago, but this study also includes a girl.

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Three studies have been carried out with rodents, and the results have been published in the specialized journal “Endocrine Connections”. The researchers, scientists at the Copenhagen University Hospital, led by Dr. David Kristensen, have studied and analyzed how paracetamol alters the number of eggs we are born with, both in rodents and in female humans. We all know that we are born with a certain number of eggs for reproduction. This amount can be affected by numerous problems that occur throughout pregnancy, among them, and according to these latest data, by the use of paracetamol during pregnancy. Apparently, this drug reduces the number of eggs and, therefore, success in fertility would be more complicated. In any case, Dr. Kristensen wants to be cautious because although there is an important similarity between the organism of rodents and humans, there is still much to compare and discover. Furthermore, it is especially difficult to create a parallel between the mother's use of paracetamol and the reproductive health of her daughters years later.

Paracetamol in pregnancy associated with language delays

Daughters of women who take paracetamol more than six times at the beginning of pregnancy have almost six times the risk of suffering a delay in language development, compared to girls whose mothers did not take it. Research, carried out by scientists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York (USA), also blames this drug for a higher rate of problems in language development in girls whose mothers took it while they were pregnant.

In the work, published in European Psychiatry, a study in Sweden was analyzed with data from 754 women who had enrolled when they were at the beginning of pregnancy, specifically between weeks 8 and 13 of pregnancy, who reported on their paracetamol consumption in recent months, and who also underwent urine analysis to check what the levels of this substance were at the beginning of the follow-up.

Just over 59% of women reported taking paracetamol early in their pregnancy. To determine if there was a delay in the language development of their children, the children were evaluated at 30 months of age and at two and a half years, taking into account whether they used less than 50 words to express themselves, and with a questionnaire answered by the parents.

The main author of the work, Shanna Swan, has stated that they intend to carry out new evaluations of the children when they turn seven years old, and that, given the prevalence of paracetamol use in the prenatal period, if their findings are confirmed, pregnant women should limit their consumption, since difficulties in language development can predict neurological disorders in childhood.

Video: Is it dangerous to take paracetamol during pregnancy?