Reflux baby - DH wants a curry! How long after eating do I have to wait before I breast-feed?

[EmmalinaC]

My 11 week old DD2 is exclusively breastfed and has mild reflux (not severe enough to need medication other than a nighttime dose of gaviscon)but enough to make her cranky and uncomfortable if I'm not careful what I eat.

DH and I are going out for first time since the birth (his birthday) and he wants a curry which I know will make her very cross. I have expressed a couple of feeds so I can have a glass of wine but I just wondered whether this will be enough to mean I can have a curry too?! I assume food takes longer to work through the system but not sure how long. If I bf before we go out, the two bottles should take her through to around 4am.

Any thoughts welcome? Is that long enough or should we skip the curry?!

Thanks

Emmalina - just feed her A curry and a glass of wine really does not warrant expressing in advance - why are you worried about a glass of wine? Check the mumsnet archives for loads of stuff about alcohol and breastfeeding and you'll re-consider whether it is worth the hassle of suspending breastfeeding. Remember that skipping two feeds will leave you feeling very full and uncomfortable.

OK - so I see you have had problems in the past with curry. Can you have something different, say with milder spices? If you do want a curry, then it would be guesswork as to how long to wait...your experience of what has happened before is as good a guide as any.

Enjoy your evening, anyway

Don't do it! I had to call out the doctor when I did this with DS1. He had colic, but I hadn't linked it with what I was eating - and it got significantly worse after the curry.

My doctor, herself Indian, told me that she never ate curry when breast feeding.

Oh dear! That's rather conflicting advice...

Sorry, BIWI, I know it can happen to some, but I'm really confused as to what the general female population of India do when bfing.

My DD has no problem with a curry but blue cheese affects her poos! No more blue cheese for a little while longer. So if yours is picking up on some of what you eat, then don't do it. Or do what you are doing, have the curry and keep expressing and replace with formula/previously expressed milk until it's out of your system and only you will know how long that will take that through experience.

I wouldn't worry about one glass of wine, mind you.

Ds had shocking Reflux and was on all all the meds. I never found curry to be a problem and ate loads of it.

raw onion on the other hand...

Babies have to get used to what mums eat and drink.

Not advocating you go out and get drunk, but one or two glasses of wine and a mild curry won't do your dd any long lasting harm.

All the Indian ladies I have met don't alter their diet when either breastfeeding or expressing, the babies just have to get on with whatever curry their mum has consumed recently.
Can make for some interesting nappies!!

Go out and enjoy yourselves and just eat a really mild curry

Sorry flappy - but there was no way DS1 could 'get used to it'. He was in terrible pain, it was horrible.

Obviously all babies are different, but it was interesting that my GP told me her story as well.

how on earth does curry get into breastmilk? i'm sure i was shot down a while back for saying mum drinking orange juice could help a constipated baby, with the argument being that only a very few things going through the stomach, like alcohol and milk proteins, make it into breast milk at all.

I have no idea chandellina - but trust me on this, the effect was very severe and not one I repeated in a hurry. DS1 was in agony.

BecauseI'mWorthIt, was curry part of your staple diet throughout pregnancy and a meal that you ate at least twice a day?

If not, then your baby wouldn't be "used" to the spices used so there is always the possibility that babies can have a reaction to whatever mum has ingested.

A lot of foods will pass into breastmilk which babies will react to, including curries, chocolate and orange juice

Have met quite a few Indian mums and the only concession that some have made is to eat slightly milder curries.

Others carry on eating what they are used to eating.

I loved very spicy curries when pregnant with dd1, am normally a complete wimp but dd1 loves curries at the age of 4.

maybe the restaurant can prepare you something without curry spices? if you ask in advance? or something like (dry) chicken tikka and plain rice shouldn't be too bad.

chand - I'm not pregnant any more! DS1 is 17 ...

flappy - I didn't eat curry regularly, but I have always liked cooking with garlic and chilli - I was never sure if it was the garlic or the chilli, so held back on both until DS1 was weaned.

Just a thought but if it will be a big problem for you could DH be nice and agree to go to a different restaurant and maybe get a takeaway curry the next weekend or something? Then you could relax and not have to worry about it on your rare night out.

My son had reflux (he was never in pain just threw up all the time). The food I ate made no difference to him whatsoever. My only tip is that eating curry whilst breadtfeeding be careful because it is hard to get the stains out of white babygros.