To use electronic cigarettes even though I'm BF

[silversparrow]

I know small amounts of nicoteine can get into breast-milk.

I've never smoked real cigarettes (hate the smell) but I used to be addicted to electronic ones (gave up when pregnant).

Recently I started having a few puffs on electronic cigarette when very tired or very stressed (eg when baby has been crying for hours). I don't do it near him.

But I'm now craving them all day and having a puff several times a day. I love the buzz from nicoteine. It also helps me stay awake. Baby has reflux and is teething and DH is in bed with flu, and without the nicoteine shots I'd be tearing my hair out by now.

AIBU to use them?

YANBU. From what we know about smoking and breastmilk, while nicotine does go through to milk, the smoke is the bigger problem. Passive smoking is a lot more harmful than ingesting some nicotine via breastmilk.

I think it's a good idea especially if you're planning to use the lower nicotine ones as time goes on to wean yourself down. I would recommend trying to time a vape after a feed rather than before so that you get the biggest gap possible between ingesting nicotine and then feeding the baby. That gives it the most chance to disperse from the milk.

Here's an information sheet from the Breastfeeding Network Drugs in Breastmilk team:

"Exposure of the baby to NRT [nicotine replacement therapy] products is safer than exposure to cigarettes and with appropriate support may help the mother (and ideally her partner) to quit smoking permanently"

"There appears to be no current research on “e cigarettes”. Although there is some vapour release the risk would probably be less than with smoking."
breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/wp-content/dibm/smoking%20and%20smoking%20cessation.pdf

Just so you know - everyone says that these things "must be better than real cigarettes..." ok, based on what evidence? Long term studies? The ones that haven't been done, you mean???

As well as having not a clue of the long term health risks, its a totally unregulated market meaning that the person you buy the vapor from has not a single responsibility to buy through a legitimate supply chain. He could be knocking this stuff up in his garage (or buying it from cheap china, full of illegal chemicals, which is more likely)

One of those chemicals causes a condition called popcorn lung. Here's an NHS article on it. www.nhs.uk/news/2015/12December/Pages/Flavouring-found-in-e-cigarettes-linked-to-popcorn-lung.aspx

So basically you are smoking a legal high, simply because it hasn't been make illegal yet. The pro vaping groups are usually the ones in charge of bringing down tobacco sales so there is very little real information on it. The RCGP are against it.

So I think YABU.

I vape whilst BF

5% of vapers never smoked.

Put that in your cig and smoke it!

Ask why, but why anything. Why smoke ever? Why vape? Why drink?

YANBU

Yanbu. Youve just had a baby. You do what you need to do to stay sane.

You are being very naive if you think the only thing in an ecig that will damage the health of your baby is nicotine.

Baby in one hand feeding, and puffing away with the other hand. What are you thinking? UrgH!

I'm with cersei here. What's in them? No one knows. There's no regulation of the contents. As cersei says, you are the long term study. That's why I wouldn't use them.

Can you swap for another reward during the day? Lovely coffee and chocolate? 15 minutes of the Archers?

FFS AlwaysHopeful1 did you actually read the bit of the OP where silversparrow said 'I don't do it near him'?

it's unhealthy period. read and twist what ever interpretation you will smoking/vaping isn't a healthy choice. why would anyone condone it? very strange. she is teaching her son an unhealthy way of coping with normal life stress.

eat celery, put on headphones or get an occasional babysitter.
waste of money
yes op yabu!

Just to bring some sense back into this thread, Public Health Enland released this evidence on ecigs PHE on ecigs, including debunking popcorn lung shite. They are not unregulated, we know what's in them and they are at least 95% safer than tobacco. However OP has stated she used NRT spray as well as ecigs and she appears to know what is the right way to go.

Hmm.... I did a quick search of that doc (published in Aug 2015, before the NHS article came out in December 2015) and can't find any mention of popcorn lung/bronchiolitis obliterans.

And PHE have been criticised for their supportive stance on ecigs. They are very keen to get tobacco smoking down so I can see why they would be supportive. Vaping seems like a huge white elephant to me. Can't people just not smoke shite around their children instead?

www.theguardian.com/society/2015/sep/15/experts-criticise-public-health-england-e-cigarettes-review

Have you tried the nicotine free ecigs? There are lots of disposable fruit flavoured ones.

Fwiw in amongst all the shock & horror: nicotine is a clean drug and doesn't 'harm' babies.

Cigarettes are dangerous because of all the toxins shoved in too & the smoke lingering on clothes/hair/fingers etc. A vape thing is not ideal no, but if you can't be perfect in every way (well done with the breastfeeding by the way) it's much better than smoking cigs.

Are you getting treatment for the baby's reflux?

Phew, I'm so glad cersei is here with the facts 🤔

I'm not going to judge you OP, hope the baby's settled down and your able to have some rest & for you.

Well it's up to you who to believe, after all. But if the British Medical Association and the Royal College of General Practitioners can't agree with PHE on the subject, then I'm going to err on the side of caution. Esp when babies are involved. But it is your choice (and your child's lungs).

FFS popcorn lung.

We need Plenty of Pubes with all her links and evidence.

I know exactly what is in my e-cig juice thank you.

Cersei has done nothing but confuse things. The NHS link clearly states "We don't know whether these chemicals....cause lung damage".
The popcorn lung shite is old news, this time last year it was debunked when Dame Sally Davies, CMO England lied on BBC about it.

Can't people just not smoke shite around their children instead?

I don't smoke shite around my children.

I vape, nice stuff at that.

We all know it is safer than smoking. Look at the amount of chemicals in cigarettes. Look what is in E-juice. It's a non brainer really isn't it?

People don't look and research though, they read scaremongering headlines and think we'll all die of popcorn lung... And then post it onto threads like this where more people will believe it and so on....
I know exactly what's in mine too.
I buy from a uk based company, who is currently doing TPD testing.

Well like Cersai says, its up to you. I guess we'll know in 25 years when the long term effects come out

Quite, and since most ecig users were smokers what the feck has it got to do with never smokers.

Anyway OP, I'd have a puff after a feed, when he is settled ideally.
Try and reduce the nicotine if you can :)