A basic rule about drinking alcohol during the time you are breastfeeding is to limit or restrict your baby's exposure, just as you have done throughout your pregnancy. Alcohol does pass through your bloodstream into your breast milk so your baby will be affected by the alcohol you consume.
Should You Pump and Dump after Drinking Alcohol?
Experts have of course, always cautioned mothers to avoid drinking since it was impossible to measure the alcohol content or know how much alcohol the baby would be getting. In essence, mothers have been told that "pumping and dumping" their breast milk was the safest way to avoid giving their baby breast milk if they were uncertain about the alcohol content.
In some cases pumping and dumping may be unnecessary if the mother consumes only a small amount of alcohol. We know that the effects of alcohol depend on many factors. Some of those variables include the amount of time since the alcohol was consumed, the person's body weight and the amount of food in the stomach. In addition, if the mother is pumping and dumping her breast milk and she does not have enough safe breast milk stored, she will then need to offer her baby infant formula.
Can You Drink in Moderation While Breastfeeding?
In the past, mothers have been told that as long as they drink in moderation then it is safest for baby. However this advice has flaws. One mother's interpretation of moderation may be 2 drinks and another mom may think moderation means stopping at one drink. What about the mother who decides to have a glass of wine on an empty stomach? She is drinking in moderation, but the amount of alcohol passed on to the baby in her breast milk is hard to guess when there is no food to slow down absorption.
So how can you determine the alcohol content in your breast milk? How will you know if your breast milk is safe to give to your baby?
Determining if Your Breast Milk is Safe
A new company has now taken the guess work out of determining whether or not your breast milk is safe after you have consumed alcohol. The simple home test can be purchased online or in department stores. It takes only 2 minutes to complete the test and provides a total of 12 test strips to use. Mothers can take the test by saturating a small test pad with their breast milk. The results show a color variation on the test strip that indicates a level of alcohol content in the mother's breast milk from .02%.
Remember that a good rule of thumb is to avoid or restrict alcohol during pregnancy and while you are breastfeeding. However when you decide to consume even small amounts of alcohol, be sure that your breast milk is safe for your baby.
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