Pregnancy: Herbs and Supplements Official Sources Flag

Start with your midwife, obstetrician or pharmacist. This page lists what official sources say about particular herbs and supplements in pregnancy. It is not a list of safe options and it does not tell anyone what to take. In a poisoning or emergency in the United States, call 911 or Poison Help at 1-800-222-1222.

How to read this list

• A source saying "may be unsafe" is a caution, not a diagnosis of harm for any one person.
• Evidence types differ. Some cautions come from human reports, some from animal findings. The table says which when the source does.
• A herb that does not appear here has not been shown safe. It means we did not find a statement in the sources we read.
• Results for one plant part or preparation do not transfer to another. A tea, a capsule and a tincture are different products.
• Scientific plant names below were matched to accepted names in the GBIF taxonomy. [1]

What the sources say

The NCCIH pages below are from the US National Institutes of Health; the year is the "last updated" date on each page.

Ginger: two official views

NCCIH says ginger may help mild nausea and vomiting in pregnancy, but the evidence that it is safe in pregnancy is not conclusive, and it suggests talking to a health care provider before using ginger supplements. [10] The 2014 review Herbal therapies in pregnancy found ginger the most investigated remedy, with nausea benefit consistently reported. [11]

The European Medicines Agency, in its summary of the HMPC conclusions on ginger rhizome (Zingiber officinale) herbal medicines, lists "if you are pregnant or if you breast feed your child" among situations where those medicines should not be used. [12] Both statements can be true together: they cover different products and standards of proof. Ask your midwife about ginger in any form beyond ordinary food. See also ginger.

Raspberry leaf

Red raspberry leaf (Rubus idaeus) is traditionally thought to help labor. The 2014 review says very few scientific data support that use, and it adds that raspberry, blue cohosh, castor oil and evening primrose oil, all believed in traditional medicine to facilitate labor, have been associated with severe adverse events; its summary names blue cohosh and evening primrose oil. [11] The EMA summary for raspberry leaf says those medicines should only be used in adults; the summary page we read does not mention pregnancy. [13] Read more at raspberry leaf.

Teas and vitamin A

The NHS advises avoiding more than four cups of herbal tea a day in pregnancy, and avoiding teas containing liquorice root. [14] The NHS also says liver and foods containing liver are high in vitamin A, which can be harmful to the baby. [14] MedlinePlus says large doses of vitamin A in pregnant women can cause birth defects. [15] More at Vitamin A excess in pregnancy.

Where sources disagree or are thin

• St. John's wort: NCCIH cautions, while a 2014 review described safety data for pregnancy and lactation as reassuring and efficacy as shown only in people who were not pregnant. [11] We do not resolve this; a clinician weighs it, especially because of documented medicine interactions.
• Whole-field view: a 2026 systematic review found no clear overall rise in adverse offspring outcomes with prenatal herbal medicine, yet a few herbs, including licorice (Glycyrrhiza) with preterm birth, showed signals based on few studies. [16]
• Proper evidence not found in the sources we read for evening primrose oil, castor oil or most other herbs beyond the statements above. We did not read an official list covering them.

What to do

1. Bring a list of every supplement, tea and medicine you use to your prenatal visit; FDA advises bringing such a list to every visit. [17]
2. Ask your midwife or pharmacist before starting or continuing anything. [18]
3. Never stop a prescribed medicine without checking with the prescriber. [18]
4. Look at the label for product quality questions: Product quality and contamination.

Related: Pregnancy and breastfeeding overview, Medicine interactions.