Taking Parnate While Pregnant: What You Need to Know

Can you take Parnate while pregnant?

When a woman becomes pregnant, everything she ingests has the potential to affect the fetus developing in her womb. This is true for foods and beverages as well as medications. Because the fetus is so sensitive during this time, it is recommended that pregnant women monitor everything they put in their bodies and avoid using drugs as much as possible. This includes avoiding prescription medications, over-the-counter drugs, and illegal substances while pregnant. Although, some women may need to stay on certain medications during their pregnancy because they depend on medications to function in their daily lives.

Parnate is a prescription medication used to treat depression. It is classified as a monoamine oxidase inhibitor. If you are using Parnate, make sure you notify your doctor of all your current medications, including herbal supplements and over-the-counter drugs. This is important because using Parnate and other monoamine oxidase inhibitors with certain drugs can cause dangerous interactions. If you are using parnate, try to avoid the following types of drugs as much as possible: other antidepressants, appetite suppressants, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medications, high blood pressure medications, other monoamine oxidase inhibitors, narcotics, Parkinson’s disease medications, migraine drugs, and stimulants.

If you are pregnant or are considering becoming pregnant and have questions about whether Parnate is safe to use during pregnancy, set up a meeting with your doctor to discuss all your options. Generally, this medication is only recommended for use by pregnant women if the benefits outweigh the risk to the fetus. Your doctor will be able to determine whether using Parnate during pregnancy is right for your situation.

If you are currently using Parnate and become pregnant, let your doctor know as soon as possible. In addition, it is important to remember you should never adjust your Parnate treatment frequency or dosage levels without your doctor’s instruction. Even if you no longer want to use Parnate during your pregnancy, you should never stop using this medication suddenly. Abruptly stopping your Parnate treatment will put you at increased risk for withdrawal symptoms. Some withdrawal symptoms can negatively affect your health and the health of the fetus. For this reason, ask your doctor about tapering off Parnate if you no longer want to use the medication. This strategy of gradually lowering the Parnate dose over time will help you avoid withdrawal symptoms.

Is Parnate harmful to your baby? Common side effects

The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has not assigned Parante to a pregnancy risk category. Typically, the FDA will assign drugs to different risk categories which determine whether the medication is safe to use during pregnancy. However, because Parnate is unassigned, it should only be used during pregnancy when absolutely necessary. It is believed Parnate is unassigned due to a lack of research on the medication.

Some animal studies have shown that Parnate can cross the placental barrier and affect a developing fetus. However, there is not enough research on human subjects to confirm any adverse effects of Parnate on human fetuses. Because there is a lack of research on this topic, it is recommended that women only use Parnate during pregnancy if the benefits of the medication outweigh the potential risks to the fetus.

There is also a lack of research on whether Parnate can pass into breast milk and cause complications for newborns. Because of this lack of information, you should thoroughly discuss with your doctor whether or not you should breastfeed while using Parnate.

There are other medications that are safer to use while pregnant if you do not want to use Parnate. In most cases, SSRI antidepressants are thought to be the safest depression medications to use during pregnancy. These include Zoloft, Celexa, and Prozac. If you have less severe depression, you may want to seek other alternatives besides medication to help treat your disorder.

The best way to handle whether or not you want to use any medication while pregnant is to set up a conception plan with your doctor. By letting your doctor know when you would like to become pregnant, this will give you enough time to decide whether you should stay on drugs like Parnate while pregnant or how long you should stop using them before you try to conceive.

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