Drinking while breastfeeding

You are probably getting conflicting advice about drinking while breastfeeding. This might mean you have a lot of questions. Your best bet is to look at the hard facts and decide what works for you and your family.

Alcohol and Breast Milk

The amount of alcohol in your breast milk is directly related to how much you drink. It is also affected by how much you eat and how much you weigh. For example, the more you weigh, the faster you metabolize alcohol. And if you are eating, less alcohol is more readily absorbed. When you drink alcohol your breast milk will also contain some of the alcohol. This amount will peak thirty to sixty minutes after drinking an alcoholic beverage.

If you drank while eating, it can take longer—about sixty to ninety minutes—for that alcohol to peak in your breast milk. Pumping and dumping—expressing breast milk after you have had alcohol—is not recommended. It’s a waste of breast milk, because usually, by the time you are ready to feed your baby again, there is so little alcohol in the milk that it is safe for your baby to ingest. If you are worried about your baby getting alcohol in your breast milk, feed your baby first and then enjoy your drink. Chances are good that by the time the next feeding comes around, you will not be feeling the effects anymore and your breast milk is considered clean.

Another factor to consider is how old your baby is when you are drinking. All the way to about three months of age, a new baby has a more immature liver. This means that even though babies are getting reduced amounts of alcohol, it will take them about twice as long to process that alcohol. After that point, babies can metabolize alcohol much more quickly. So when it comes to consuming alcohol, the younger the baby is, the more effects you are likely to see.

How Much Is too Much?

If you are drinking to the point of inebriation, you should not breastfeed while drunk. Once you are feeling sober, your breast milk will have almost no alcohol in it. As soon as you are not feeling the effects, your breast milk is considered clean. Breast milk does not store alcohol. If you are drinking to the point of inebriation, child care is a must. The research that has been done on breastfeeding and drinking has been limited to small amounts of alcohol. Binge drinking or drinking on a daily basis does not have a lot of data behind it. Obviously, however, the more frequently you drink, the more alcohol your baby has to process.

Having a glass of wine or a drink occasionally is one thing. But a baby who is exposed to chronic drinking will show many problems. First, you might notice the baby begins to sleep more. He might have an ineffective latch, and therefore weight loss or lack of sufficient weight gain might be noticed. Slowly, you will see deterioration in the baby’s growth patterns physically and developmentally.

This is why daily drinking is not recommended for breastfeeding mothers. Social drinking is considered to be fairly safe for your baby. This might mean having a glass of wine at a party or with your dinner. You might go out with some friends and have a cocktail or two. But know the facts about drinking and breastfeeding.

There are a lot of factors to consider. You should keep in mind your physical ability to tolerate alcohol, your weight, what you’ve eaten, your baby’s age and weight, the amount of alcohol in the drinks, and other factors that might influence the decision.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS FOR NURSING MOMS

What should I ***drink* *while breastfeeding*** ?

Water, the elixir of life, is the healthiest fluid choice (you should drink at least 2 liters of water per day). Fruit juices that have been diluted, fresh vegetable juices, and herbal teas also make good choices. Have a drink beside you every time you sit down to nurse.Avoid dehydrating beverages such as coffee, alcohol, and black teas.

We had a party last night and I’m afraid that I drank too much wine.

The younger your infant is, the more sensitive he or she will be to substances such as caffeine and alcohol.Take this into consideration, and limit your consumption to zero or to minimal amounts. Babies’ sensitive organs, particularly the liver, will have the added burden of detoxifying any consumption of alcohol or recreational drugs. A little nonalcoholic beer on occasion has been shown to increase the quantity of breast milk in some women.