Hey Chomas,

So, I’ve been getting a lot of questions around home remedies for terminating pregnancy (Abortion), especially on “does coke and disprin work for abortion”?

This is only one of the home remedies that young women have used to get rid of pregnancy and your Choma is here to get real with you about that!

Well… disprin for one is an aspirin, an over-the-counter medication which is usually taken for mild to moderate pain such as headaches, nerve pain and to also treat fever associated with colds and flu.

A person who’s pregnant is not advised to take anything more than a necessary panado, as it is risky to the pregnant woman and her baby.

What does a home remedy like disprin do to a pregnant woman, her fetus or unborn baby?

It induces the pregnancy…inducing means using a strategy to start a process of labour. So, that will basically cause the fetus or baby to ‘escape the womb’. Inducing labour is only supposed to be done by a health professional (doctor) as there is a risk to the unborn baby or mother or if at due time of labour, the baby needs to come out to stop it from losing its life. These safe strategies conducted by a doctor are proven methods which ensure that the mother and baby remain safe.

So, what is this big risk about inducing pregnancy with things like disprin?

It will not only induce the pregnancy but will cause a life threat to the pregnant mother. What will happen is that you can experience what is called a partial miscarriage or incomplete abortion, which means some fetal tissue will still be left in the womb of the woman (also known as kobo in Sesotho)…this can be fatal, meaning cause death, for the woman because of the unusual bleeding or high infection due to the fetal tissue. This can only be treated medically.

A high dosage of disprin may also cause liver or kidney disorders, even affect the gastrointestinal tract (a pathway where food enters and solid waste is released). In short Chomas, disprin and coke are NOT safe pregnancy termination methods.

Tip: Rather rely on contraceptives to avoid unwanted pregnancies. Use methods such as PrEP to prevent HIV and make sure you learn about your sexual health, so that you keep your body healthy and make better life choices.

Still got questions, feel free to send me a message.

If you or a friend need advice or help, you can contact me here on Ask Choma, send me a Facebook Message, an  Instagram message, a  Twitter DM, or a WhatsApp Message (071 172 3657)