# constipation and pregnancy



## Guest (Oct 26, 2001)

I am 14 wks pg and stopped taking my magnesium previous to becoming pg. Awhile back I heard an overdose of magnesium killed a newborn baby. Does anyone have any knowledge of this?? I am desparately missing my magnesium. Nothing else helps.


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## wishicouldgo (Jul 2, 1999)

I'm 17 weeks preg and can sure relate. Didn't think the IBS could get worse. I haven't heard the mag being harmful, I'd ask the doc. I found that if I upped my water intake from 8 glasses to 10-12 and my fiber all the way up to 35 grams a day, it's helped a little but hard to keep up daily. Sometimes milk of magnesia helps a little which doc said is fine. Stool softeners which she said are fine do nothing. What have you tried.


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## Stace (Sep 20, 2000)

Hi,I am pregnant and in week 40 and due any day now. Have you tried Milk of Magnesia? My ob/gyn said I could use it everday if I needed to. I have only had to use it a few times, but it worked great in making me go.Stacey


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## Guest (Oct 30, 2001)

I try to drink metamucil once a day, but doens't really help. And now and then I take Colace (stool softener). I think my next option isthe Milk of M. Thanks.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Like many if not most of the essential nutrients our body needs desparately to work at all, they can be problematic if you take way too much of it.For magnesium the MINIMUM you should have every day is 400mgs the maximum is 1000mgs. Newborns would probably need less. I dunno about the report, but if an infant got into someones supplements (or magnesium containing laxatives or antacids) and downed the better part of a bottle of just about anything there could be consiquences.here is the pregnancy info for MOM


> quote:magnesium hydroxide Magnesium hydroxide has not been formally assigned to a pregnancy category. There are no controlled data in human pregnancy. Other magnesium salts (such as magnesium sulfate) have been used extensively during pregnancy in large doses with no reports of congenital defects. Magnesium hydroxide should only be given in pregnancy when benefit outweighs risk.


K.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Have you checked with the OB-GYN, what do they say??Usually things that have a USRDA are not big worries during pregnancyANDThe pregnancy info for magnesium sulfate which is category A. It is used to treat pre-eclampsia.


> quote:magnesium sulfate Brand: magnesium sulfate 1.ï¿½ï¿½ Magnesium sulfate has been assigned to pregnancy category A. Studies in pregnant women have not shown evidence of fetal risk if magnesium sulfate is administered during any trimesters of pregnancy. However, because studies cannot completely rule out the possibility of harm, magnesium sulfate injection should only be given during pregnancy when need has been clearly established.ï¿½ï¿½	Newborns may show signs of magnesium toxicity (i.e. respiratory and/or neuromuscular depression) if the mother has received intravenous magnesium sulfate prior to delivery (especially if for a period of longer than 24 hours). Equipment for assisted ventilation as well as intravenous calcium should be immediately available for the first 24 to 48 hours after delivery. However, intravenous magnesium sulfate did not lead to lower neonate apgar scores in a study of women treated for pre-eclampsia even though the newborn's cord level indicated hypermagnesemia. The mean cord magnesium level (5.3 mEq/100 ml) was equivalent to the mean maternal serum level. Cord serum magnesium levels do not usually correlate with infant toxicity. The Collaborative Perinatal Project monitored 50,282 mother-child pairs, 141 of which had been exposed to magnesium sulfate during pregnancy. No reports or evidence were found linking congenital birth defects with magnesium sulfate. A study of 7000 offspring of mothers treated for pre-eclampsia noted no adverse effects due to magnesium sulfate therapy in the fetuses or newborns. One study compared the newborn of women with pregnancy-induced hypertension who received magnesium sulfate with women who did not receive treatment. Neurologic behavior in the infants was similar in both groups except that the exposed group had decreased active tone of the neck extensors the day after birth. Long-term infusions of magnesium (such as those used for tocolysis) may lead to persistent hypocalcemia and congenital rickets in the fetus. Case reports of 2 women receiving 9 or 14 weeks of intravenous magnesium therapy prior to delivery noted bony abnormalities. Slight hypocalcemia occurred in one infant. Both infants were treated with intravenous calcium for 3 to 5 days and then given bottle feedings without added calcium or vitamin D. The only noted physical abnormality at 3 year follow-up was dental enamel hypoplasia in one infant. Fetal hypermagnesemia may have decreased parathyroid hormone release and lead to fetal hypocalcemia. The combination of in-utero acquired magnesium sulfate and gentamicin (administered after birth) may lead to respiratory depression in the newborn. The mechanism of this interaction is not known. Animal studies have confirmed this drug interaction.


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