These days, fertility problems seem more prevalent than before. According to various testimonies, couples have more difficulty having children. Social networks have thus become a sort of giant laboratory, where everyone tries to share their tips for encouraging pregnancy. Right now, a big TikTok trend is all the rage. In fact, many women having difficulty conceiving have indicated that they became pregnant thanks to cold medicine: Mucinex.HuffPost published an article a few days ago on this new trend. However, is it really effective according to science?
Why is a cough medicine in the news right now?
In 1982, a scientific study on Mucinex and its active ingredient was published in the magazine Fertility and Sterility. She showed that Mucinex could both thin the mucus of a cold, but also modify the cervical mucus of women, and thus allow women who are unable to have children, to get pregnant.
Cervical mucus constitutes a protective shield for the uterus: it balances the vaginal flora by naturally cleaning the inside of the vagina by expelling pathogens and impurities, it lubricates the vagina during sexual intercourse to allow penetration and plays a role in key role in the procreation process since, depending on its appearance, it can promote the circulation of sperm to the egg or, on the contrary, prevent access.
Explains Doctor Christelle Besnard-Charvet, a renowned gynecologist in the medical field. Taking Mucinex could thus modify the texture of cervical mucus that is too thick in certain women, preventing access of the egg to the sperm.
It is believed that women who may have hostile (thick) cervical mucus can use Mucinex, which will allow the cervical mucus to become thinner.
Is Mucinex really effective?
Finally, there is no proof that these women were able to become pregnant using Mucinex. But the reverse is not proven either. It is therefore possible that this medicine can help women get pregnant. What is certain, however, is that this medication can thin the vaginal mucous membranes of women with too thick mucous membranes, which can promote and encourage the meeting between egg and sperm.
