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Is chlorpheniramine 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 chlorpheniramine (OTIS, published via the NIH) sourcesUpdated Jul 21, 2026How we research

The questions people actually ask about chlorpheniramine 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 chlorpheniramine. Can it make it harder for me to get pregnant?

It is not known if chlorpheniramine can make it harder to get pregnant.

Does taking chlorpheniramine increase the chance of miscarriage?

Miscarriage is common and can occur in any pregnancy for many different reasons. Information from studies done on antihistamines including chlorpheniramine have not suggested an increased chance of miscarriage.

Does taking chlorpheniramine increase the chance of birth defects?

Birth defects can happen in any pregnancy for different reasons. Out of all babies born each year, about 3 out of 100 (3%) will have a birth defect. We look at research studies to try to understand if an exposure, like chlorpheniramine, might increase the chance of birth defects in a pregnancy.

Most studies find no overall increased chance of birth defects with the use of chlorpheniramine in pregnancy. While two studies found a small increased chance for different types of birth defects, no specific pattern of birth defects has been reported.

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

Chlorpheniramine is not expected to increase the chance for 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).

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

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

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

There are some case reports of low sperm activity with long-term antihistamine use in men. This might affect men’s fertility (ability to get a woman pregnant). This effect went away when the medications were stopped. In general, exposures that fathers or sperm donors 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 — Chlorpheniramine, published January 2025. MotherToBaby states its fact sheets should not take the place of medical care and advice from your healthcare providers.

Breastfeeding is a separate question — what LactMed says about chlorpheniramine

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.