Skip to main content

Senna Pregnancy and Breastfeeding Warnings

Brand names: Agoral, Correctol Herbal Tea Laxative, Dosaflex, Dr Caldwell Laxative, Ex-Lax, Ex-Lax Chocolated, Ex-Lax Gentle Nature, Fletchers Castoria, Gentlax, Geri-Kot, Innerclean, Little Tummys Laxative Drops, Pedia-Lax Quick Dissolve Strips, Senexon, Senna Concentrate, Senna Lax, Senna-gen, SenoSol, Senokot, Senokot Child, Senokot To Go, Senolax, Swiss Kriss, Uni-Cenna, X-Prep

Medically reviewed by Drugs.com. Last updated on Oct 24, 2023.

Senna Pregnancy Warnings

Use is not recommended unless clearly needed.

AU TGA pregnancy category: Not formally assigned to a pregnancy category.
US FDA pregnancy category: Not formally assigned to a pregnancy category.

Comment: There are no data on fertility.

Animal studies have failed to reveal evidence of fetal harm or undesirable/damaging effects occurring during pregnancy. There are experimental data of genotoxic risks with anthranoids (e.g., aloe-emodin, emodin). There are no controlled data in human pregnancy.

See references

Senna Breastfeeding Warnings

This drug should be used only if clearly needed.

Excreted into human milk: Yes (active metabolite [rhein] and parent compound)

Comments:
-The American Academy of Pediatrics considers this drug as compatible with breastfeeding.
-Some manufacturers recommend consulting with a healthcare professional prior to use.
-Some experts state that usual doses are acceptable for use.
-The WHO classify this drug as compatible with breastfeeding; however, this drug should be used only if dietary measured for treating constipation fail.

See references

See also

References for pregnancy information

  1. (2005) "Product Information. Fletchers Castoria (senna)." Mentholatum Company, The
  2. (2022) "Product Information. SenoSol-X (senna)." Apothecon Inc
  3. Cerner Multum, Inc. "UK Summary of Product Characteristics."
  4. Cerner Multum, Inc. "Australian Product Information."
  5. TGA. Therapeutic Goods Administration. Australian Drug Evaluation Committee (2010) Prescribing medicines in pregnancy: an Australian categorisation of risk of drug use in pregnancy. http://www.tga.gov.au/docs/html/medpreg.htm
  6. (2019) "Product Information. Ex-Lax Chocolated (senna)." Novartis Consumer Health
  7. (2019) "Product Information. Ex-Lax Extra Strength (senna)." Novartis Consumer Health
  8. (2019) "Product Information. Ex-Lax Regular Strength Pills (senna)." Novartis Consumer Health
  9. (2019) "Product Information. Senna (senna)." Humco Holding Group
  10. (2019) "Product Information. Senna Lax (senna)." Mylan Institutional (formerly UDL Laboratories)
  11. (2019) "Product Information. Senokot (senna)." Palmetto State Pharmaceuticals Inc

References for breastfeeding information

  1. (2005) "Product Information. Fletchers Castoria (senna)." Mentholatum Company, The
  2. (2022) "Product Information. SenoSol-X (senna)." Apothecon Inc
  3. Cerner Multum, Inc. "UK Summary of Product Characteristics."
  4. Cerner Multum, Inc. "Australian Product Information."
  5. United States National Library of Medicine (2013) Toxnet. Toxicology Data Network. http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/htmlgen?LACT
  6. Department of Adolescent and Child Health and Development. UNICEF. World Health Organization (2014) Breastfeeding and maternal medication: recommendations for drugs in the eleventh Who model list of essential drugs. http://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2002/55732.pdf?ua=1
  7. (2019) "Product Information. Ex-Lax Chocolated (senna)." Novartis Consumer Health
  8. (2019) "Product Information. Ex-Lax Extra Strength (senna)." Novartis Consumer Health
  9. (2019) "Product Information. Ex-Lax Regular Strength Pills (senna)." Novartis Consumer Health
  10. (2019) "Product Information. Senna (senna)." Humco Holding Group
  11. (2019) "Product Information. Senna Lax (senna)." Mylan Institutional (formerly UDL Laboratories)
  12. (2019) "Product Information. Senokot (senna)." Palmetto State Pharmaceuticals Inc

Further information

Always consult your healthcare provider to ensure the information displayed on this page applies to your personal circumstances.

Medical Disclaimer