It’s alarming when you realize that many of the medications we take haven’t been tested for their long-term effects on our health. Take for instance the drug Labetalol, a medicine that is sometimes prescribed to women suffering from pregnancy-related hypertension or high blood pressure. A preliminary study in The Netherlands reveals that Labetalol may increase a child’s chances of developing ADHD if his or her mother took the drug during pregnancy.
The study, which is published in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, compared the effects of Labetalol with another anti-hypertensive medication called methyldopa. These effects were determined by looking through the records of 4,000 women from 12 hospitals. All the women were found to have high blood pressure, which was either aggravated by pregnancy or caused by the pregnancy. 202 children from these women aged 4 to 12 were tested for IQ, motor development, concentration level, and overall behavior. It was found that children whose mothers took labetalol were twice more likely to meet the diagnostic criteria of ADHD than children whose mothers who took methyldopa. Compared to the women who took no anti-hypertensive drugs but rested instead, the children in the labetalol group were four times more likely to develop childhood ADHD.
This does not mean that children whose mothers who took methyldopa were unaffected by the drug. Even if the methyldopa children were not hyperactive or inattentive, they were more likely to suffer from sleep problems than the labetalol children or those whose mothers were told to rest.
The children from all three groups did not have any significant differences in terms of other functional development.
The researchers intend to do more studies to confirm the effects of anti-hypertensive drugs on a baby’s development. But just to be on the safe side, try to stay avoid taking medications during pregnancy. Even if the medication is supposed to be safe for pregnant women, there’s no telling how it will affect your baby’s health in the long-term.