How will drinking alchohal effect my baby if im breastfeeding?

Question

I'm going to a bridal shower and was hoping to have a few drinks...i have herd i can breastfeed 2 hours after my last drink. any advice on breastfeeding would help a lot its my first time...second child, and i'm pretty much clueless. i only pump and its my 3rd day (i started a week late)

Answer 1

The American Academy of Pediatrics policy on breast feeding and alcohol consumption states that "Breastfeeding mothers should avoid the use of alcoholic beverages, because alcohol is concentrated in breast milk and its use can inhibit milk production. An occasional celebratory single, small alcoholic drink is acceptable, but breastfeeding should be avoided for 2 hours after the drink."

It takes 2 to 3 hours for a grown woman to pass one serving of beer or wine out of her body and as long as 13 hours to completely rid of high alcohol content beverages from the body. The more alcohol consumed, the longer it takes to pass from the body.

Pumping and expressing breast milk will not empty or get rid of alcohol levels quicker nor will drinking water, coffee, or any other substance.

Answer 2

Guidelines
Current research says that occasional use of alcohol (1-2 drinks) is not harmful to the nursing baby. The American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Drugs classifies alcohol (ethanol) as a “Maternal Medication Usually Compatible With Breastfeeding.”
Many experts recommend against drinking more than 1-2 drinks per week.
It is recommended that nursing moms avoid breastfeeding during and for 2-3 hours after drinking (Hale 2002).
There is no need to pump & dump milk after drinking alcohol, other than for mom's comfort -- pumping & dumping does not speed the elimination of alcohol from the milk.
Alcohol does not increase milk production, and has been shown to inhibit let-down and decrease milk production .

If you're away from your baby, try to pump as often as baby usually nurses (this is to maintain milk supply, not because of the alcohol). At the very least, pump or hand express whenever you feel uncomfortably full - this will help you to avoid plugged ducts and mastitis.
In general, if you are sober enough to drive, you are sober enough to breastfeed. Less than 2% of the alcohol consumed by the mother reaches her blood and milk. Alcohol peaks in mom's blood and milk approximately 1/2-1 hour after drinking (but there is considerable variation from person to person, depending upon how much food was eaten in the same time period, mom's body weight and percentage of body fat, etc.). Alcohol does not accumulate in breastmilk, but leaves the milk as it leaves the blood; so when your blood alcohol levels are back down, so are your milk alcohol levels.

Always keep in mind the baby's age when considering the effect of alcohol. A newborn has a very immature liver, so minute amounts of alcohol would be more of a burden. Up until around 3 months of age, infants detoxify alcohol at around half the rate of an adult. An older baby or toddler can metabolize the alcohol more quickly.

Answer 3

Anything at all that you consume will be present in your breastmilk. Alcohol is poison to your baby. Don't drink if you are breastfeeding.

"Some health care providers feel it is best to avoid all alcohol while nursing. Some feel that occasional moderate drinking is okay and some feel that if any alcohol is consumed, you should pump and dump for 24 hours."
"Alcohol clears the breast milk in about the same amount of time it takes to clear the blood stream. If you are planning to drink heavily (more than 2 drinks), you may want to give it 6-8 hours to clear your system," Ryan says.

But Denise G Hewson, RN, IBCLC at the Breastfeeding.com web site has a different view. "By the time you are no longer feeling "tipsy" it is okay to feed your baby. Alcohol does not go into your milk and stay there. It goes in and comes out. If you feel ok, then most of the alcohol is out of your milk. If you have any doubt, pump and dump one time and that should be fine."

But the American Academy of Pediatricians has a still different view: While you are nursing, avoid drinking alcohol because it can pass through your milk to your baby. If you choose to drink alcohol, drink it just after you nurse rather than just before."

Answer 4

Alcohol will be metabolized from your breast milk at the same rate that it is metabolized from your blood. So use the same rule of thumb, one hour per drink. A drink is 12oz beer, 5oz of wine, or 1oz of hard liquor. If you can feel the alcohol in your system, then there is alcohol in your breast milk. And if that happens at the time for a feeding, then you should pump and dump to maintain milk production. But pumping and dumping is not necessary if you have given your body adequate time to metabolize and eliminate the alcohol from your system.

If you do over indulge, make sure there is a sober adult around to care for the children (designated parent? ;) ).

Answer 5

you're supposed to limit alcohol while breastfeeding, that doesn't mean cutting it out completely, so a few drinks shouldn't hurt. I would take the advice of the person before me that said to pump some breastmilk into a bottle and put it in the fridge.

Answer 6

General rule: Too drunk to drive, too drunk to nurse.

So you've been exclusivly pumping for 3 days and your babe is 10 days old?

I really wouldn't leave the baby, or drink at all with a babe that young... take her with you so everyone can goo and gah over her (or him!) and have virgin drinks.

ETA: if you do deside to drink, you don't need to wait a day to feed the baby. Just wait until you can't feel it anymore (and drink lots of water!) and you'll be fine. With exclusive pumping, you will probably want to pump and ussual and dump any milk that you express while you still feel the alcohal.

Answer 7

try to pump some extra milk before you drink and put it in fridge for later. the day you drink you need to pump and dump it. I always tried to keep a little extra milk in the freezer. you never know if you will get sick and have to take medicine the baby cant have.

Answer 8

to respond to your question specifically: Your ingesting cow's milk won't effect the nutrients on your toddler. some toddlers have a sensitivity to dairy in a mom's weight loss plan, yet that's uncommon. My grandmother develop into nursing her toddlers returned in the 40's whilst her medical doctors gave her the advice to confirm to drink greater effective milk. She theory that develop into form of humorous, by fact that cows do no longer drink milk whilst they make milk, they consume grass and hay. She figured that she ought to consume salads, no longer milk.

Answer 9

I wouldn't risk it.

Baby that young does not have fully developed organs. Even small amount of alcohol can send him/her into serious problems such as seizures.

You might wait a whole day before feeding.

Answer 10

depending on how much you drink your baby could become intoxicated alcohol causes liver damage in adults a growing child has enough to compete with


dont drink or dont breastfeed