does alcohol affect breast milk?

Question

i't my birthday next month and im going out and i was just wondering if alcohol affect the breast milk.

Answer 1

yes, it does. but as long you as you not go out and get drunk and then breastfeed the baby, you will be fine. just make sure that you give the alcohol plenty of time to run it's course before feeding the baby.

Answer 2

Do I have to pump and dump after drinking an alcoholic beverage?
As alcohol leaves the bloodstream, it leaves the breastmilk. Since alcohol is not "trapped" in breastmilk (it returns to the bloodstream as mother's blood alcohol level declines), pumping and dumping will not remove it. Pumping and dumping, drinking a lot of water, resting, or drinking coffee will not speed up the rate of the elimination of alcohol from your body.

What if I get drunk?
Mothers who are intoxicated should not breastfeed until they are completely sober, at which time most of the alcohol will have left the mother's blood. Drinking to the point of intoxication, or binge drinking, by breastfeeding mothers has not been adequately studied. Since all of the risks are not understood, drinking to the point of intoxication is not advised

Weighing the Risks and Benefits
Many mothers find themselves in a situation where they may want to drink. Maybe you are going to a wedding where wine will be served. Or perhaps you are going on a girls night out, or on a date with your husband. No matter the reason, you may have concerns about drinking and any possible affects on your baby. It is a good idea to weigh the benefits of breastfeeding against the benefits and possible risks of consuming alcohol. You might find the following suggestions helpful.

Plan Ahead
If you want to drink, but are concerned about the effect on your baby, you can store some expressed breastmilk for the occasion
You can choose to wait for the alcohol to clear your system before nursing
If your breasts become full while waiting for the alcohol to clear, you can hand express or pump, discarding the milk that you express
Alternatives
If consuming alcohol while breastfeeding is concerning to you, consider enjoying a non-alcoholic beverage instead. Any drink is more fun with an umbrella in it!

-from La Leche League


also here's a good link for breastfeeding myths:
http://www.bflrc.com/newman/breastfeeding/mythjn02.htm

Answer 3

Yes it does affect the milk. My nurse told me to wait five hours after drinking and pump the milk and throw it away. But I have had others say that I didn't have to pump. But i did anyways just to be safe. Put some breast milk back for that day, and just don't feed from the breast, feed from a bottle. That way you'll be sure that no alcohol is getting to your baby.

Answer 4

It will affect your milk, as will almost anything you consume. If I were you I would pump some milk a day or two (to be safe) before your birthday. Make sure you have enough milk for at least two days. I don't know how much you drink but alcohol can stay in your system over 12 hours...especially if your body does not metabolize alcohol quickly. The day after your party drink loads of water and you should be fine to breastfeed again. I would call my ob/gyn to make sure though! Have fun, and happy birthday!

Answer 5

yes this will affect your breastfeeding start expressing now and freeze as the alcohol will be still in your system for a while so express as much as you can. Also start getting your baby used to take milk from a bottle from someone else as sometimes they can get a bit funny with that, if your baby has trouble taking a bottle from someone else give them a old jumper or some that you have wore before with your perfume on it etc so your baby thinks that it is you that is feeding it and not someone else and that will help them with settling down that is what I did when I finally got a night out have a great time and enjoy

Answer 6

I never was able to breasfeed unfortunately but I believe that anything you eat or drink affects the milk so why dont you on that occasion pump some of your milk into sufficient bottles, or give a bottle of normal baby milk. It wont do the baby any harm and then mum go go out and have a well-earned break.

Answer 7

I've just started my nurse training with Health Visitors who work with babies and their families. Mothers are strongly advised not take alcohol if they are about to breast feed because it is harmful to the babies. Alcohol can flow into the breast milk while they are breast fed. The alcohol is known to affect the babies sleeping and future feeding. But taking small amounts in times that you won't be breast feeding is okay

Answer 8

Sorry you can't drink for you birthday. In all fairness you can have a FEW oz of wine only. other wise you need to pump milk for the baby to have the day after you would drink - until the alcohol is out and that takes an hour an oz!
Babies deserve better than that though- http://www.yourchildrennaturally.com

Answer 9

You should know that ANYTHING you consume will be in your breast milk in some way shape or form, and then you will pass that along to your child. If you want to go out, can you do some extra pumping/storing of the bm so that you can clean out for a day or so prior to breast feeding again?

Answer 10

yes at my breastfeeding class the nct lady said that the amount of alcohol in your milk is the same as that of your blood. so maybe you could feed just before you go out and have some expressed milk ready (start now, you can freeze ilk for 3 months) for when you have drunk to much and you should be fine the next day.

Answer 11

Well if your going out to get totally smashed then its not a good idea considering you gotta wake up to the child and then feed it, but i breastfed 4 and so did my sister and it affects different people in different ways, i couldn't drink any fizzy drink as it gave my child wind terribly but my sister could, i could eat spicy food she couldn't I went out for a 'night' and had a few drinks i breastfed my boy and he was fine, it really depends on how old he is and how often you feed, its not that easy to 'pump' because none of mine would accept the bottle but when he went to bed at 7, i went out at 8 then he slept through till 7 next morning and i'd already been in for a few hours and drank plenty of water. You know your child, this question is a bit difficult to answer on here because everyone's child is different.