Can you drink alcohol while breast-feeding?

[wondering7777]

I've come across conflicting advice on this. I'm hoping to give breast-feeding a go when my baby is born, while also being prepared to switch to bottle feeding if it doesn't work out.

On average, how long do women normally breast-feed their babies for and can you drink any alcohol during that time, or does it transfer to the baby?

People say what they want to hear.

How much research has been made on it? Numbers please. How many exclusively breastfeeding mums had the time to put themselves under research while consuming different amounts of alcohol and Hager it tested at different times so research can be actually done? How many babies in the same tune have been tested to see if alcohol is passing in their blood stream? Consider on top how tiny babies are and how quickly neurologically they grow, and how the smallest amount that for an adult would be ok for a baby would be harmful.

Please don't throw gate on my post, but I think that decisions that could affect a baby that can't decide, deserve a lot of consideration.

Personally I like to drink really occasionally, maybe a bear or some wine for a really special occasion , but I don't find it such a big difficulty to not do it while expecting and breastfeeding. I have a lot of other time to do it afterwards.

The issue with drinking alcohol and BF is an increase risk of SIDS. If you’ve had several alcoholic drinks you increase the risk of SIDS as you’re more likely to fall asleep whilst breastfeeding. So, think of it if you’re safe to drive you’re safe to BF.

I B.fed both mine until 12-18 months. One refused bottles (but had a few whilst tiny). The other had 1 bottle a day. I consider them breastfed babies.

Oh, forgot the actual question. Yes I enjoyed wine. It would have been a long 3 years t total.

You can bread feed for as long or short as you like. I breastfed my DC for around 14 months when they stopped wanting it. I know people who only do it for the first 6 months or less and others for over 3 years The World Health Organisatuon recommends feeding for 2 years.
You can drink some alcohol while breast feeding but not so much you would get drunk! Some people prefer not to drink alcohol or caffeine at all while feeding.

@R2D2abc we know how much alcohol is in the mother’s bloodstream because it’s the same in non-breastfeeding women and has been tested extensively. It’s 0.5% or less (and to get as high as 0.5% you would have to be pretty much comatose). We know that the amount of alcohol in breastmilk will be no higher than the amount in the mother’s blood i.e. no higher than 0.5%. We know that 0.5% alcohol or less is not harmful - drinks with this little alcohol in are not even required to be labelled as such. We know this because we know the chemical composition of alcohol and how it is metabolised at a molecular level.

What further research would you like them do?

OP, the hardest part of breastfeeding is the beginning! I nearly gave up at two weeks because I was so exhausted but decided I would get to six weeks before stopping. By six weeks it was getting a lot easier so I decided to aim for six months instead. He’s now a year and I’m still feeding him morning and night - it’s just so much easier than messing around with formula. I do drink alcohol but didn’t drink a lot in the early days because it’s hard enough getting up to feed at night without being sleepy from alcohol!

You also may no want to drink much with a baby. Broken sleep and a hangover don’t go well together.

Yes 🙌🙌🙌 some days it is needed! Enjoy 🍸

@Darkstar4855 great post. I hate the ‘don’t risk it’ mantra, it just makes it more difficult for mums to breastfeed - I know a woman who stopped breastfeeding because she wanted to have a drink over Christmas.

OP everyone on here bar one or two have said it’s fine to drink as much as you want - as long as you’re not too drunk to look after your baby then you’re fine!

Around 33% of babies are still getting breastmilk at 6 months :) It's just no longer exclusive because most people give solids by 6 months as per guidelines.

For me, breastfeeding (especially in the early days) and co-sleeping go hand in hand, so I don't drink when breastfeeding because it is incredibly dangerous to co-sleep with any amount of alcohol in your system. But if your baby sleeps well in a cot, this isn't a problem and you can drink alcohol if you like. There is more danger to the baby from being cared for by a tipsy adult (risk of falls, accidents etc) than there is from them ingesting some milk with a tiny amount of alcohol in it :)

Oh and as to length of feeding I agree with @Darkstar4855, the hardest part is the first few weeks. My first I only fed for a week before stopping because it’s was so exhausting and painful (undiagnosed severe tongue tie), my second I didn’t try but my third I thought I’d try and do 6 weeks until my husband went back to work. It was exhausting but by the end of the 6 weeks it was so much easier.

We did 10 months before I stopped to go back to work (although we’re not in that 1% of breastfed babies because she had a bottle a day and weaned a week before she was 6 months!)

I used to have wine - makes life so much more pleasant sometimes. The odd glass is fine but not if co-sleeping or in very early days.

Huh, if you can hold the baby & the drink, go for it . Just try not to spill the wine on the baby’s head. 😳