Читать книгу Zita West’s Guide to Getting Pregnant - Zita WEST, Zita West - Страница 49

• Drinking plenty of water will increase your internal fluid balance and make any bodily secretion more fluid.

• Avoiding antihistamines, which reduce mucus secretions.

• Avoid high doses of vitamin C (more than 1,000mg per day).

Does Robitussin Really Work?

In chat rooms across the Internet, hundreds of women swear by taking 2 tablespoons of cough medicine that contains guaifenesin as the only active ingredient before ovulation. (Guaifenesin works as an expectorant to increase the liquidity of mucus production in the lungs, and elsewhere, to make coughing up phlegm easier.) It is believed that this makes cervical mucus more liquid and hospitable to sperm. While this may work in principle – and anecdotal evidence is eagerly repeated – there is little scientific evidence to back it up, although one 20-year-old study does indicate that it can be helpful in thinning out cervical mucus.

If you are going to take it, you would want to do so about five days before and including the day of ovulation. However, when you are trying to conceive it’s worth thinking about the effects of any medication that you take, even those bought over the counter. There are some women who have allergic reactions to guaifenesin, although it is generally considered safe. Make sure there are no other ingredients in the cough mixture that could be harmful – check with your pharmacist.