Breastfeeding and alcohol - Breastfeeding Message Board

sweetea13 · 03-17-2006, 02:22 PM

Has anyone that is breastfeeding drank alcohol at all. I am not talking like getting drunk everynight but is it okay to pump a bottle and then have a few drinks. What do you all do?

Kiedy · 03-17-2006, 05:36 PM

The alcohol does enter breastmilk, so if I planned to have a glass of wine, I would do it after I breastfed him last at the end of the night and had a 5hr window before feeding him agian.

Of course drinking too much is not recommended not just b/c you will pass the alcohol to the baby but also b/c should you drink too much, you may be too intoxicated to wake up and look after the baby safely. But one drink occasionally should be fine.

After not drinking anything for 9 mo, I couldn't wait to have a glass of wine for the first time when he was couple months.

S&J · 03-17-2006, 07:20 PM

I had my first one "drink" after I knew that ds was sleeping at least 7hrs through the night. But I know some people will pump after they've had alcohol..make sure to throw out the expressed milk.

feb06baby · 03-18-2006, 11:37 AM

I had a few drinks the other night while at a family get together, but made sure I had plenty of expressed milk to feed her while I was drinking. After I stopped drinking (8pm) I waited 2 hours per drink before I breastfed again. This is what was recommended in the book "The Nusring Mothers Companion". I have heard that you should pump and discard the milk after you drink, but the book did not say it was nesessary to do do so, but to just allow enough time to pass before BFing again.

Gayle0000 · 03-18-2006, 03:57 PM

When I got home from the hospita (and after I was off pain meds), I had a beer every day for about a week straight. I never dumped. In my BF class, they taught us that a beer/drink is fine...2 beers/drinks and you should consider pumping and dumping...even if you don't feel tipsy.