Chrons Disease and Pregnancy

I found the information on pregnancy and Chrons disease that was originally written by Rhonda Mann who is from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and hope that it may help anyone out there who has Chrons disease and is thinking of having children or who may already be pregnant with Chrons disease and looking for some advice.

A Healthy Mom
The first thing that is important to point out that with any pregnancy it is beast for the woman to be in good health so if you do have Chrons disease you are already at a disadvantage. But if you have Chrons disease and want children you can help by eating right and exercising but you must also bring your Chrons Disease under control.

Chronss Disease as well as Ulcerative Colitis effect the digestive tract and are known as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). There are about 1 million people in America alone who have IBD, which can cause abdominal pain and diarrhea. Both men and women are equally susceptible to IBD and the symptoms usually begin between the ages of 20 and 40, which can be particularly problematic for women who wish to have children and who have Chrons.

Because Chrons disease often affects women in their childbearing years, it is important for women to know when it is safe for them to get pregnant. This is according to Dr. Jacqueline Wolf who is a national (American) expert on IBD and pregnancy and who is also a physician in the Division of Gastroenterology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

According to the research on Crohn's disease and Pregnancy, if you have your Chrons disease under control at the moment of conception you are are less likely to have any complications during your pregnancy.

It was only about Twenty years ago, women with Chrons disease were being told not to have children now the view is different and most women with Chrons disease can have a safe pregnancy and delivery, but that is if you go into the pregnancy without the disease being active.

To achieve this, it requires using certain medications to keep IBD inactive before and during the pregnancy. Obviously you know as well as I do that this is not simple as some of the medications frequently used to treat IBD and Chrons disease are not approved for use during pregnancy and some may lead to birth defects. Unfortunately there is still a lot to learn about the safety of Chrons disease drugs during pregnancy ans especially breastfeeding but on the bright side, whilst there are still some unknowns with a few of the Chrons drug treatments, it has been found that most of the medications are safe in pregnancy.

As you probably know and I have found in the past that by coming off my medication results in me having a flare up and so it will probably not be possible to come off your Chrons disease medication during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Sometimes woman with Chrons need to make their own informed decision about what is best for themselves and their baby, but probably the best advice is if you are on any form of Chrons disease treatment, to remain on treatment - with the exception of methotrexate, which should never be used in pregnancy.


Most woman fears are whilst taking medication is what it would mean for their baby, when faced with the decision about continuing their Chrons disease treatment during pregnancy.

If you are planning to have a baby and you have Chrons disease, the best advice is to speak with your doctor and let them know of your plans and they will best be able to advise you based on your personal circumstances. But I feel that it is important to know that it is possible to have a baby if you have Chrons disease.

Inflammatory bowel disease should be controlled prior to pregnancy: ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease. (Women's Health).: An article from: Family Practice News