URGENT breastfeeding advice and taking aspirin

[vespalover]

Hi, I know it's late but hoping someone MA be able to give some advice? I'm EBF my three week old and its going really well - unlike last time when I had to supplement with FF early on due to failure to thrive. Due to a splitting headache I stupidly took two painkillers about 1.5 hours ago withou checking and they have 300mg of aspirin in ( I took two). NHS direct say I now can feed until 9am at the earliest, the hospital midwife and LLL advisor I just range said just feed him and don worry about it but didn't know about dosage taken etc. I really don't know what to do. I dont want to mess up breastfeeding, dont have any formula in the house etc but obviously don't want to risk harming him either. Please help.

I don't think I can give you advice on safe dosage, but can you not call back the hospital and ask with the specific dosage? Does LLL have a 24/7 hour helpline?

When I google, I get information that low dosages are safe - 75-125 mg. And that in a study where someone took 500mg, the peak time was 2 hours after taking it. And the effects on the infant are unclear - studies are all over the place. So, short answer is: this is a pretty complicated question, I would want to either play it safe with formula (if you can get some; I don't think it'll mess things up for one night) or get a second medical opinion.

(I never usually say to use formula, by the way, I know it's often a knee-jerk reaction to problems, but in this case, I'd be wary of ignoring NHS direct)

Lots of information here. Probably safer to use formula given the dosage you took www.toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/search/f?./temp/~WkK7IB:1

One or two bottles of formula don't have to spoil your plan to breastfeed.

Personally, on the advice you were given, I would probably offer formula for the next 3.5 hours, making 5 hours since you took the aspirin, then go back to the breast. As a compromise.
But that's with no background knowledge of anything medical. This can't have been good for your headache, poor you.

Thank you all. Just got back from tesco. Thought I should play it safe, as you all said. Really annoyed with myself but just got to get on with it and not wallow in my annoyance with myself. Bought one of the ready to use teats and ready made up formula. Hospital midwife was very much ' don't worry about what NHS direct think they always say that' and LLL helper was lovely but I'd obviously got her out of bed which I feel ready bad about. Thank you so much for getting back to me ( my husband said I was silly for even trying to get advice at this hour!) I really really appreciate it.

I read the LactMed page as saying that long-term high dose ingestion is not advised & would have carried on with BFing & just wouldn't take aspirin again.

www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/pdfs/Analgesia_and_Breastfeeding_March_2010.pdf

My partner accidentally took a 500mg Asprin (ASA) tablet. She called our local health unit who had us call are pharmacy and she was advised to not breastfeed for 6 hrs from when the tablet was taken. We used formula in that 6 hours to supplement. She pumped and dumped once not because she was advised to but to be safe and she was full and wanted to keep milk production stimulated. DON'T BEAT YOURSELF UP. THIS HAPPENS. Lots of products contain (ASA) acetylsalicylic acid like: cough, cold, pain, heartburn medicines and natural products containg willow bark.