ELI5- When a mother is pregnant and is given drugs in hospital before giving birth to reduce pain etc, do the drugs have an affect on the baby? (However minor it may be)

Question

ELI5- When a mother is pregnant and is given drugs in hospital before giving birth to reduce pain etc, do the drugs have an affect on the baby? (However minor it may be)

In: Other

Answer 1

Are you talking about an epidural? If so, super loaded question and likely to be a hot topic.

I am not a professional.

The epidural will affect the baby in the sense that it enters the bloodstream.

But what I heard more of back when my kids were born was the debate on “natural” birth and how many people are against the epidural because of the “natural birth” aspect and theories on how the point of birth affects all kinds of long term development. This is where I found it to be most hotly contested.

But again, I am not a professional. That was just my experience.