Pregnancy, breastfeeding and fertility while taking ferrous sulfate

Your doctor or midwife may recommend that you take an iron supplement (ferrous sulfate) in pregnancy if blood tests have shown that your iron levels are low. Iron supplements are safe to take in pregnancy and it's important that low iron levels are treated so that you and your baby stay healthy.

If you're pregnant and taking iron supplements, it's common to become constipated or get piles (haemorrhoids). A doctor, pharmacist or midwife can give you advice on how to avoid this. If you do get constipation or piles, talk to a doctor, midwife or pharmacist about the best way to treat this.

You can usually take ferrous sulfate while you are breastfeeding.

Iron (including ferrous sulfate) is a natural part of breast milk. When you take iron as a supplement it does not affect how much gets into breast milk or how much gets to your baby.

This means that taking iron supplements is very unlikely to cause any side effects in your baby.

However, if your baby also has low iron levels, they will need to be treated directly. Any iron supplements that you're taking will not affect their levels.

If you notice your baby is not feeding as well as usual, or has constipation or diarrhoea, or you have any other concerns about your baby, contact your doctor, pharmacist, health visitor or midwife.

There's no evidence that ferrous sulfate will affect fertility in either men or women.

Tell your doctor if you're:

• trying to get pregnant
• pregnant
• breastfeeding