breastfeeding and drinking?

Question

how long does alcohol remain in breastmilk? is it necessary to pump and throw away the milk if you had anything to drink even if its been a good 12-24 hours after? thank you for your answers!

i do not care for rude answers. i AM the mom and yes, i had a drink last night for the first time since i had my daughter 2 months ago and NO i dont feel guilty about it. i have pumped milk prior to going out and this is what she has been drinking. i wanted more information so that i can make more informed choices. thank you to those who understand about leading real life. im not going to lock myself in my house and never go out again simply because i have a child. i did not get drunk by ANY means and i had a wonderful time getting to hang out with my friends for once. its a rare occurance, but i enjoyed it so please, dont try to make me feel guilty about having ONE drink. i was gone for 2 hours. she drank pumped milk all night and this morning.

Answer 1

It is too bad everyone else it being so rude. I am a Breastfeeding Peer Counselor and it is ok to have a drink once in awile even when you are nursing. The drink will work out of your body in unusally 2-3 hours and you don't have to worry about pumping and dumping. It sounds like you did everything right and your baby will be just fine. Everything in moderation is just fine. You are doing a great job by breastfeeding your baby and you deserve to relax every now and then. Good luck

Answer 2

Alcohol passes through breastmilk the same as it does your bloodstream. Needing to pump before breastfeeding is a myth, and has no benefits. It generally takes two hours to metabolize one drink. So if you plan on going out to eat, or having a glass of wine or something nurse first, and by the time he/she's hungry again it should be safe to nurse again.
After reading those other answers I can tell you the majority are uneducated and way too uptight. God's sake, it does not take 12 hours for it to leave your system! In fact, lactation consultants recommend mothers who are having diffuculties with let down to nurse a beer while nursing their baby. Go to the la leache club website, you'll find that just because you're breastfeeding, it doesn't mean you can't have a life!


MKTK401 has it exactly right!

Answer 3

The American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Drugs classifies alcohol (ethanol) as a “Maternal Medication Usually Compatible With Breastfeeding.”

You only need to wait about 2 hours for each drink you had before you can nurse. (Per the book "Medications & Mother's Milk" by Hale.) You DO NOT need to "pump and dump" as alcohol is eliminated from your milk in the same way it leaves your bloodstream. The ONLY reason to "pump and dump" would be if the mom becomes engorged and needs to do so for her own comfort.

A good general rule is "if your head is clear, your milk is too" or "if you're sober enough to drive.....you're sober enough to nurse." Less than 2% of the alcohol consumed by the mother reaches her blood and milk.

Answer 4

Hi! "Pumping and Dumping" doesnt work to get the alcohol out of your milk. Because the alcohol does not collect in your milk ducts or breasts for you to "dump it out". Traces can stay in your milk for about 3 days depending on the amount you have consumed. If you've only had one small drink 12-24 hours should be FINE!

Answer 5

Alcohol goes through the body fairly quickly...no more than 12 hours or so. Plus, if you had ONE drink....i wouldnt bother to 'pump and dump' unless you are very petite and weigh under 110 or so....by AM you should be good to nurse again.

Answer 6

When breastfeeding you should wait at least 24 hours before allowing your child to begin again. Keep pumping and throw it out that way you do not dry up. Until then the milk you expressed before drinking will be just fine for baby. And if there isn't enough supplementing with formula will not hurt anything either until it is safe to give your child breast milk again.

Answer 7

It really depends on the amount of alcohol that you drank, you can choose to wait for the alcohol to clear your system before nursing or if your breasts become full while waiting for the alcohol to clear, you can hand express or pump, discarding the milk that you express, the La Leche league website has alot of helpful info for breast feeding moms!!! Hope this helps!

Answer 8

well its been a while but- a drink now and then isn't a horrible thing. do what you did- pump first.enough for a few feedings. pump again the next am and throw that milk away. wait at least 12 hours, i think, after drinking before you give that milk to baby. for real info, consult your pediatrician or a lactation consultant.

Answer 9

What about drinking alcohol and breastfeeding?
Women are often warned to not consume alcohol during pregnancy, as ample evidence has shown that it poses a severe and avoidable risk to her unborn baby. The risks of consuming alcohol while breastfeeding are not as well defined. Breastfeeding mothers receive conflicting advice about whether alcohol consumption can have an affect on their baby, which often leaves mothers feeling like they have more questions than answers. So, what information should a mother who is considering drinking while breastfeeding know?

La Leche League's THE WOMANLY ART OF BREASTFEEDING (p. 328) says:

The effects of alcohol on the breastfeeding baby are directly related to the amount the mother ingests. When the breastfeeding mother drinks occasionally or limits her consumption to one drink or less per day, the amount of alcohol her baby recieves has not been proven to be harmful.

La Leche League's THE BREASTFEEDING ANSWER BOOK (pp. 597-598) says:

Alcohol passes freely into mother's milk and has been found to peak about 30 to 60 minutes after consumption, 60 to 90 minutes when taken with food. Alcohol also freely passes out of a mother's milk and her system. It takes a 120 pound woman about two to three hours to eliminate from her body the alcohol in one serving of beer or wine...the more alcohol that is consumed, the longer it takes for it to be eliminated. It takes up to 13 hours for a 120 pound woman to eliminate the alcohol from one high-alcohol drink. The effects of alcohol on the breastfeeding baby are directly related to the amount the mother consumes.

The American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Drugs considers alcohol compatible with breastfeeding. It lists possible side effects if consumed in large amounts, including: drowsiness, deep sleep, weakness, and abnormal weight gain in the infant, and the possiblity of decreased milk-ejection reflex in the mother. The drug transfer table is available at http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics;108/3/776/T6 and the full text of The Transfer of Drugs and Other Chemicals Into Human Milk can be found at http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics;108/3/776

Dr. Jack Newman, member of the LLLI Health Advisory Council, says this in his handout "More Breastfeeding Myths":

Reasonable alcohol intake should not be discouraged at all. As is the case with most drugs, very little alcohol comes out in the milk. The mother can take some alcohol and continue breastfeeding as she normally does. Prohibiting alcohol is another way we make life unnecessarily restrictive for nursing mothers.

Thomas W. Hale, R.Ph. Ph.D., member of the LLLI Health Advisory Council, says this in his book Medications and Mothers' Milk (11th ed.):

Adult metabolism of alcohol is approximately 1 oz in 3 hours, so that mothers who ingest alcohol in moderate amounts can generally return to breastfeeding as soon as they feel neurologically normal.

Answer 10

There are varied opinions, but obviously to be safe a day would be best.
You surely shouldn't be drinking if you are breastfeeding - as a mom now, you should be making some sacrifices for your baby. I hope to gosh you didn't drink during your pregnancy.