wine

[Ladypug]

Can I have a glass of something alcoholic on Christmas Day whilst breastfeeding or is it really bad? Did anyone else have a cheeky glass whilst feeding?

I like to credit my DC's content nature with the fact that I have drank wine since the day I brought him home. He was ebf and I'm still feeding him at 14mths. He is super healthy, I promise. The odd glass will not hurt. I would never get hammered but I like a glass of wine.

Definitely! The amount of alcohol that ends up in your milk is very low. If you're worried, time your drink for when you have just done a feed to maximise the time your body has to clear itself of alcohol before the next feed.

One cheeky glass isn't going to be a problem.

When I was breastfeeding over Christmas, I got DP to give DD a bottle, just so that I could relax a bit more. I obviously didn't go mad, as I still needed to be okay to feed the next morning, but it meant that I had a pleasant evening with everyone and didn't feel like I was on the sidelines.

If your DC won't/can't take a bottle then one is honestly not going to hurt, especially if you time it for straight after a feed, not just before...

X-posts!

Yes definitely - La Leche League website has great guidance on this if I recall. Hardly any gets into milk, just don't get drunk!

It's totally fine for modest amounts occasionally. I read somewhere once that getting so pissed you drop them is a bigger risk than alcohol passing through breast milk ;)

I think my health visitor recommend starting while dd was feeding and sipping slowly make sure you have lots of water too.

Yep ecuse - my midwife said it was fine to drink and breastfeed and the limit was 'being too drunk to hold the baby'. I'm fairly sure she was joking about that but certainly a couple of glasses of wine would be fine.

Gentle reminder though - it's not safe to cosleep if you've been drinking at all, as you sleep more heavily, so your DC should be put somewhere else overnight if you are bedsharing.

Thank you everyone, phew! I really want a glass!

evolutionaryparenting.com/guest-post-breastfeeding-and-alcohol-consumption/

My lactation consultant told me to enjoy a few brandies over Christmas but watch out for the fizzy mixers

It's absolutely fine in sensible amounts. If you are worried though would your DC take milk from a bottle if you expressed some in advance?

Guinness used to be recommended for nursing mothers.

It's not cheeky, don't be infantile.

Read up, make your decision and live with it like an adult.

Oh for goodness sake, it's not a "cheeky glass", it's a glass of wine for an adult. If you are not too tired, enjoy a glass of wine!

The link above is very helpful. Annoying though that she talks about "mama" all the way through.

I find wine gives me headaches so I have a shot of vodka in juice or coke. Gives a nice clean buzz with no sleepiness or headache! As long as you stick to 1-2units a week I think it's ok. If I wanted more than that (eg alcohol on more than 2days a week over Xmas) I'd express and discard during the 6hours after drinking)... I have a supply of expressed milk in freezer.

Pump and dump has no scientific basis.

My god you get judged for everything on mumsnet don't you? It's ok to drink wine just not to use the word cheeky? And I'm infantile for asking the question? I don't think there is anything infantile about being cautious. I'm a first time mum and I'm asking a perfectly reasonable question to a fantastic network of people who have been there and done it and can offer advice. Ps thank you to the poster for the advice on expressing, that sounds great!

Hate the phrase 'cheeky glass', there's nothing cheeky about a glass of wine!
But yes, it's fine. I have a glass of wine about 3 nights a week. Sometimes 2 glasses!

You don't need to express, it's pointless unless you'll be uncomfortable.

Obviously it's fine to ask advice, but there's no point listening to something with no basis in fact.

A glass or two is fine, there's no need to express and throw it away. I'd just be careful of anything fizzy, I had a glass of champagne when Dd was small and she had the most explosive poo I had to cut her out of her babygrow.

I value experience on this subject as much as fact. Some of the facts doctors have told me over the years have been wrong! Thank you everyone, I haven't had a single drink since I found out I was pregnant back in February!

" Did anyone else have a cheeky glass whilst feeding"

I did. It didn't do DD any harm. She is 15 now and is about the only one in her friendship group who doesn't like alcohol. She even told me off for buying mince pies that had alcohol in them.

I'm breastfeeding and have nearly had a glass of wine a day since being discharged from hospital!

Sounds like you have the right idea Lemon!

I frequently have a cheeky glass of something, when breastfeeding and when not! If you want to refer to the cheekiness of wine, go right ahead, OP!

Oh, and yes to pumping and dumping being disproved. I did it with my first and was very pissed off when I found out that it wasn't necessary. The rule seems to be that whilst the alcohol is still in your body, it's also in your boobs, but when you sober up, your milk is fine.