Caffeine and breastfeeding

[OpportunityKnocks]

I just found out that you have to limit caffeine when breastfeeding. Baby is 5 weeks old and I've been drinking strong tea by the gallon and eating all the milk chocolate I can lay my hands on.

Aibu to panic?
Obviously I'll be sticking to guidelines from here on.

You'll be fine. I've been breastfeeding my son for over 2 years now. I live on coffee, tea and chocolate - consume it by the bucket load. It'll be fine, don't worry.

I would try and cut back but you won't have done any harm. I do think some babies are more sensitive than others. My friend said hers would be more fussy and difficult to settle if she drank even one coffee but I'd have the odd tea or coffee and not notice any difference.

DH did mention my caffeine consumption. I tried (not very hard) to cut down. I'd never known exhaustion like it. Drank a lot of strong brewed coffee and loads of tea.In the first few weeks I didn't drink anything unless it was made for me because I felt like I couldn't put DS down!

My second has been more reactive to caffeine than my first child (who didn’t seem to give a shit, and had since not shown any hyperactivity beyond the normal toddler ways). I keep to three cups a day and try to avoid it all together after about 7pm - but that’s more for my sake than his! I also just ate half a bag of Raspberry Ruffles, that again will probably have more effect on me than the youngest avoids looking at scales.

I could do without eating the chocolate tbh and get into my old jeans

This is my second bf child. I should know this.

I only just threw out all the disgusting decaff tea

You don’t have to do anything.

I could do without eating the chocolate tbh and get into my old jeans

Eat the chocolate and buy new jeans. I’m only half joking, this early into having a new baby you really need to just do what’s good for you (within reason of course - I wouldn’t advise eating Maccys three times a day).

It was coffee that got me through the breastfeeding demands!

Decaf does taste shit but I think it's like a maximum of like 2 cups of coffee a day. I needed to fool my brain I was getting more so decaffeinated was the best way 😂

Just looked on NHS website. Says up to 200mg which is about 2 cups of instant.

I found this with alcohol as well though. I had a health visitor tell me that as long as you had a drink 2 hours before a feed, it shouldn't pass very much (if anything) to baby through milk. I'd imagine it's the same with caffeine?

You may be able to have more once baby starts spacing out feeds a bit longer. Hooray!

I obviously can't speak for everyone but I drink 3-4 cups weak tea daily and stuff my face with chocolate most days (especially when the sleep deprivation is full on!) and it's completely fine. Try not to worry.

I turned down a coffee at DMs in the guest free weeks as I'd had one that morning. She looked at me like a lightbulb had gone on and said Christ, do you think that's why your brother didn't sleep until I stopped breastfeeding? I basically lived on coffee (she BF until nearly two...)

Wait, what? What is it supposed to do? Please don’t take my coffee away

Hmmm, seems like the only effects might be wakefulness. Nothing sinister...

I'll go off it for a week and see if he sleeps any longer than the average 2 hours. If he doesn't then I shall reattach the tea drip.

Thanks :) feel a bit better, but still bloody hard done by!

Just looked on NHS website. Says up to 200mg which is about 2 cups of instant.
57 mg in average instant coffee.