Can Mucinex Actually Help You Get Pregnant? Here's What an Expert Says

Mar. 15, 2025

Social media users are claiming Mucinex helped them get pregnant.Photo:Getty (2)

Getty (2)

Women are taking the over-the-counterdecongestantMucinex, claiming the active ingredient, guaifenesin, helped to increase their fertility — and get pregnant.

Dubbing it the"Mucinex Method,“women on TikTok and other social media platforms are sharing that they’re taking the over-the-counter cold pills during their fertile window, believing the medication can increase chances ofconception.

Stock image of the key ingredient in Mucinex, guaifenesin, which many think can help increase fertility.Getty

Getty

Some people think it also thins the cervical mucus, which ”can serve as a physical barrier to conception,” Dr. Tomer Singer, M.D. MBA, System Chief with Northwellhealth Fertility and Associate Professor, Zucker School of Medicine, tells PEOPLE.

“The idea here is that, maybe, Mucinex will do the same thing that it’s doing in the throat and in the lungs,” he says. “Maybe it will make it easier for the sperm to travel up the vagina into the cervix through the thinner cervical mucus.”

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But there’s no proof that it works.

Stock image of Mucinex at a pharamacy.Nora Savosnick/Bloomberg via Getty

Nora Savosnick/Bloomberg via Getty

While many are citing one 1982 study published in the journalFertility and Sterilitythat claimed to show some effectiveness in guaifenesine contributing to pregnacy, Singer noted “this was a very old study [done] 42 years ago with no good control at all. No one was able to replicate it and [it relied on data from a] young patient population, which could have easily gotten pregnant coincidentally. [It’s] not a study that you would conduct today.”

Another problem, he points out, is that Mucinex is a Class C drug, which theNational Library of Medicineexplains means that, when taken during pregnancy, “Risk cannot be ruled out. There are no satisfactory studies in pregnant women, but animal studies demonstrated a risk to the fetus.”

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What’s likely happening, he says, is that the women who are getting pregnant on Mucinex are already aware of other — medically proven — ways to increase their fertility rates.

“It’s a biased patient population that are already aware that there’s somewhat of an infertility before they jump into trying to intervene,” he said. “Women who are trying to conceive are focused on their cervical mucus, on checking ovulation, and making sure that their partner — if they do have a partner — does everything that he needs to do on his part: avoid smoking, alcohol consumption, a hot sauna jacuzzi, make sure that he wears boxer briefs.”

Stock image of a pregnant woman.Getty

“There’s so many variables that play into a pregnancy when a couple is trying to conceive that it would be very, very unusual to say,' Mucinex — that’s what got us pregnant.' ”

So if you’re struggling to conceive, Singer recommends seeing your doctor first.

“So that’s why we’re trying to be very careful.”

Reckitt, the manufacturer of Mucinex, told PEOPLE in a statement: “Reckitt is aware of recent social media activity surrounding Mucinex and fertility, and we understand why there is heightened interest in this topic. As a global leader in health and hygiene, it is important that we clarify that Mucinex should only be used as intended in line with label directions. Taking Mucinex for infertility constitutes off-label use.”

“Taking any medications outside their approved indications or without acknowledging all active ingredients may be harmful. In case of doubt, we recommend women have a discussion with their healthcare professional. Please always read the label and safety information before taking any self-care medication.”

source: people.com