bf and medication

[Evita]

I've been advised to take 2 lots of medication, one for possible angina (AGH!!! can't believe it) and one to help with pain in general. Both of them say 'not recommended for use with breastfeeding' but on researching them on the net I find it says that it is not known whether or not they pass into breast milk so better be safe than sorry. I only breastfeed my daughter in the evening now and to be honest there's not a lot of milk there any more. Do you think I'd be putting her at risk if I continued this and took the medication or should I just stop bf altogether? I want to be completely responsible of course, but I also don't want to stop feeding her. I'm sure tons of people have been in this situation and wondered what you think.

The 'better be safe than sorry' argument is a judgement, not a scientific statement.....so in doing your research, Evita, try to find some discussion on whether the drug is likely to pass into the milk (based on what is know about similar drugs, size of molecule and so on) . Another hint is to see whether the drugs are ever prescribed for babies/children - if they are, then you can set that against the fact that giving the meds direct is likely to mean a far, far higher dose than would ever be in breastmilk.

You should also be able to find out how long the drug remains in your system - if it is only (say) six hours, and you take two doses 12 hours apart, then time your feed so you hit the 'blind spot'.

Also: new babies are more vulnerable to anything like this than older babies, whose organs are much more mature at metabolising everything.

Breastmilk, and breastfeeding, remains worthwhile, even whe it's only done in the evenings, so you might be getting rid of something you know is important and valuable, because of an unknown.

Hope this helps a bit

It's encouraging, tiktok. I don't want to give up the breast feeding unless I have to. So far I've postponed taking the drugs until I can make a clear decision about what to do.

I haven't found a way of researching in any detail about how the drug might pass into breast milk. Any ideas where I might look for this information? The drugs aren't suitable for children according to the info and I think they stay in your system quite permanently, they build up over a number of weeks I believe.

My daughter's 15 months by the way, would that constitute for what you call an 'older baby'?

It's encouraging, tiktok. I don't want to give up the breast feeding unless I have to. So far I've postponed taking the drugs until I can make a clear decision about what to do.

I haven't found a way of researching in any detail about how the drug might pass into breast milk. Any ideas where I might look for this information? The drugs aren't suitable for children according to the info and I think they stay in your system quite permanently, they build up over a number of weeks I believe.

Stop press -- I'm so excited! Hales has started up his lactation & medications website again. Have you used the forums there to ask about your drug, Evita? If Hales doesn't know he'll find out for you. I don't think anyone can give you better advice than he can.

Oh darn, just realised that unless you can tag yourself as a 'health professional' you may not be able to ask about the drugs you use, Evita, but you may find them listed, anyway. Or perhaps someone you know could register and ask for you. Good luck! I must buy a copy of Hales book, myself.

wow, zebra, that's a really good forum. you can just say you're a health professional & they don't ask for any proof . have been checking out the many drugs i'm on & i'm not even breastfeeding...

Hale's site is very good, Zebra I didn't know it had gone away to be back!

Hales' site got attacked by hackers ages ago and all the online archives were destroyed, Must have been so demoralising.... It's been down for ages, maybe 2 years? It's worth buying his book, too, but the book can't cover everything.

Thats horrid!

Fantastic website. I registered and asked about the medication and now I'm awaiting a reply. Thanks so much for passing this link on to me.

Does any one -- Tiktok? know where I could buy Hales M&M'Milk in the UK? I have an old email about this... but that referred to the last edition. Anyway, if there is a UK, Irish or other EU source, let me know, ok?!

Anyone got the Hale book handy and can tell me what it says about Cefaclor on Page 118? My baby is 11 months old and I want to take the tablets at the best time to reduce the chance of him getting any. He has eczema and I am keen not to expose him to antibiotics.