How to Treat a Cold or Flu During Pregnancy

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Under the Weather? Here's How to Treat a Cold or Flu During Pregnancy

Getting a cold or flu is always a downer, but it can be even harder when you're pregnant and your go-to meds are off-limits. Here's how to treat your illness safely -- and feel better fast (18 Photos)

Patty Onderko on Nov 17, 2011 at 11:18AM

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Pregnant with a Cold? 17 Ways to Feel Better Faster!

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a Patty Onderko on Nov 4, 2011 at 2:52PM

Our go-to cold remedy before pregnancy? Nonstop cold meds and Project Runway. While reality TV can still help, you have to be careful what you take now that you're pregnant -- though there are still plenty of smart strategies you can try to get relief from cold symptoms. Good thing, too, because your immunity is down now that you’re knocked up. Infections (the common cold is a viral infection) are likely to lay you lower and last longer. Here’s how to safely ease your symptoms and get better.

Avoid Getting Sick in the First Place
Well, duh. You know the drill: Wash your hands well and often; get as much sleep as you can; stay away from sneezers and snifflers. But the most important thing you can do to keep yourself and your baby healthy is get a flu shot, says Marjorie Greenfield, M.D., professor of obstetrics and gynecology at University Hospitals Case Medical Center in Cleveland, Ohio and author of The Working Woman’s Pregnancy Book. The influenza virus can be especially serious (and in rare cases, deadly) for expectant women, she says.