“People think that their milk is made from their stomach contents, rather than realising it’s made from what’s in their blood. ![]() I have seen nothing to support zero alcohol,” says Pickett. The effects of long-term exposure to alcohol in a mother’s milk on the baby are unknown. The Breastfeeding Network points out that, although any alcohol consumed does pass into breastmilk, a woman’s blood levels would need to reach 300mg per 100ml before the baby would experience even mild sedation – for context, 80mg per 100ml is needed to fail a police breathalyser test in England. Pickett refers women to the CDC (the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in the US), which she calls less “floaty” than the NHS, and which states that “moderate alcohol consumption by a breastfeeding mother (up to 1 standard drink per day) is not known to be harmful to the infant”. You’re asking people to make changes that will affect them in social situations, at an important time in their lives.” “Speaking to mums, whether or not they can have a glass of wine at their friend’s hen night is the difference in whether they’ll continue to breastfeed or not. The Royal College of Midwives advises breastfeeding women to “avoid alcohol completely”. It recommends leaving two to three hours between drinking and breastfeeding. One or two units of alcohol, once or twice a week, should be fine.” The NHS website advises that: “It’s safer not to drink any alcohol while breastfeeding, but an occasional drink is unlikely to harm your baby. And to note that caffeine is also found in things like in tea, chocolate, soft drinks and energy drinks. ![]() Pickett advises mothers to simply be aware of how their baby seems to be responding, as well as how much caffeine is in their coffee, after a recent Which? report found wildly different levels on the high street – with a cappuccino from Costa containing almost fives times the quantity as one from Starbucks. Sleep disturbance, fussiness, and jitteriness have been reported in infants of mothers with caffeine consumption of 10 cups of coffee or more a day – which is more than most of us would drink. ![]() While a University of Iowa study found that in breastfeeding mothers who consumed 500mg of caffeine a day there was no discernible impact on heart rates or sleep of their babies. That said, academic studies have shown few effects on infants: researchers in Brazil concluded that “caffeine consumption by nursing mothers seems not to have consequences on sleep of infants at the age of three months”. What we do know is that if a woman consumes caffeine, around 1 per cent will find its way into her breast milk, peaking at between one to two hours after consumption.Īnd while it stays in the mother’s system for three to seven hours, it will linger in the infant for between 65 and 130 hours, because of their under-developed kidneys and liver. The science around caffeine intake is also “wishy-washy”, she adds. A chubby 10-month-old is going to be different to a newborn with a low birth weight.” It’s all very individual depending on whether you were having caffeine during pregnancy, the baby’s temperament, and their weight and age. There are some babies who don’t respond even to 300mg. “It’s just guidance, though, and on the cautious side. ![]() “Even within the same organisation, you don’t have a consistent message,” says certified lactation consultant Emma Pickett, who works with breastfeeding mothers in London. Yet on the main NHS website, it states that breastfeeding women should “restrict their caffeine intake to less than 200mg a day”. If you do drink caffeine, try not to have more than 300mg a day” (a mug of instant coffee contains 100mg). How much coffee is safe to drink?Īccording to the NHS Start for Life pregnancy, birth and parenthood advice site, “It’s wiser to cut caffeine out while breastfeeding as it’s a stimulant which can make your baby restless. With mixed messages about what to avoid here’s everything you need to know about keeping your child healthy while you’re breastfeeding. It’s worth noting however that the NHS website still states, “Do not take codeine if you are breastfeeding”, while other opioids such as tramadol or dihydrocodeine can be prescribed if the “risks to the baby” have been discussed. The study, published in the BMJ, concludes that the “postulated risks are based on poorly documented historical reports”.
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