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Is capsaicin safe during pregnancy?

Answered by MotherToBaby’s teratology specialists, quoted in full — including the questions most pages skip, like whether a father’s exposure matters.

By the pharmaranks editorial teamReviewed against the MotherToBaby fact sheet for capsaicin (OTIS, published via the NIH) sourcesUpdated Jul 21, 2026How we research

The questions people actually ask about capsaicin in pregnancy

Answered by MotherToBaby, the fact sheets written by the Organization of Teratology Information Specialists and published through the NIH. Quoted in full — we do not condense them.

I take capsaicin. Can it make it harder for me to get pregnant?

Studies have not been done in humans to see if using capsaicin can make it harder to get pregnant. Animal studies did not report that capsaicin affected female fertility (ability to get pregnant).

Does taking capsaicin increase the chance of miscarriage?

Miscarriage is common and can occur in any pregnancy for many different reasons. Studies have not been done to see if capsaicin can increase the chance of miscarriage.

Does taking capsaicin increase the chance of birth defects?

Every pregnancy starts out with a 3-5% chance of having a birth defect. This is called the background risk. Studies have not been done in humans to see if capsaicin can increase the chance of birth defects above the background risk. Animal studies do not suggest that capsaicin increases the chance of birth defects.

Does taking capsaicin in pregnancy increase the chance of other pregnancy-related problems?

Studies have not been done in humans to see if capsaicin can increase the chance of pregnancy-related problems, such as preterm delivery (birth before week 37) or low birth weight (weighing less than 5 pounds, 8 ounces [2500 grams] at birth). One animal study suggested that capsaicin might affect growth of the developing fetus.

Does taking capsaicin in pregnancy affect future behavior or learning for the child?

Studies have not been done to see if capsaicin can increase the chance of behavior or learning issues for the child.

If a man takes capsaicin, could it affect fertility or increase the chance of birth defects?

Studies have not been done in humans to see if capsaicin could affect a man’s fertility (ability to get a woman pregnant) or increase the chance of birth defects above the background risk. Animal studies do not suggest that capsaicin could affect male fertility. In general, exposures that men have are unlikely to increase risks to a pregnancy. For more information, please see the MotherToBaby fact sheet Paternal Exposures at https://mothertobaby.org/fact-sheets/paternal-exposures-pregnancy/ .

Quoted from MotherToBaby Fact Sheets — Capsaicin, published February 2024. MotherToBaby states its fact sheets should not take the place of medical care and advice from your healthcare providers.

This is general reference information, not medical advice. Whether to take any medication in pregnancy is a decision for you and your prescriber; do not start or stop a drug on your own, because an untreated condition can also carry risk.