Could paracetamol be causing problems during labour - and to our unborn children?
That is what one anonymous midwife has claimed, warning mothers and hospital staff alike that there could be a link between popping paracetamol and the rise of the latent phase of labour.
The latent phase of labour, for those who are unsure, is the first of the three stages of labour - and the longest.
It sees your cervix dilate (open) to three centimetres and begin to thin out, as well as mild to moderate contractions that last between 30 and 40 seconds.
Women going through the latent phase of labour will often feel backache or cramps. They will also probably notice a blood-tinged mucus discharge, known as a bloody show.
But it seems as if, over the years, the latent phase of labour has become longer and more uncomfortable for mothers-to-be - and The Undercover Midwife believes that this is down to using paracetamol.
Writing on her blog, she explained: “I just do not remember, either as an NHS or independent midwife in the 1980s and 1990s, women having such long exhausting and problematic latent phases as they do now.
“I also don't remember anyone telling women to ‘take a couple of paracetamol’.
“The midwives she had been ringing on the local ‘triage unit’, each one different, had told her to take paracetamol regularly and this she had done"
“Recently I informally supported someone at home who had had 4 or 5 days of latent labour. I asked her about her paracetamol intake and was shocked to find that she had consumed 25 to 30 grams of paracetamol over that period.
“The midwives she had been ringing on the local ‘triage unit’, each one different, had told her to take paracetamol regularly and this she had done.
“I asked if it was helping and she said it wasn't, so I suggested she stop taking it which she did."
She went on to explain that paracetamol is known to stop the release of “hormones [that] are vital to preparing the body to go into labour and the successful onset of labour”.
The Undercover Midwife pointed out: “My friend had taken 25 to 30 grams of paracetamol during her latent phase.
“No record is made or interest shown in how much paracetamol women are taking.
“If the drug is inhibiting labour and causing a dysfunctional and long latent phase, it will not only be her who has ingested astonishing amounts - and it is midwives who keep repeating the ‘take some paracetamol’ mantra.”
With paracetamol thought to increase the risk of childhood asthma, the blogger adds that she fears overuse of the painkiller could have a negative impact on the unborn baby’s health.
Did you take paracetamol during the early stages of labour? Did you feel it made an effect, either positive or negative, on your labour experience?
Let us know via the comments box below now.