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Original poster

EBF - can I have a glass of fizz after the birth?

66 replies

randomquestions87 · 22/02/2020 07:29

I gave up alcohol after discovering I was pregnant and have been tee-total ever since. Before getting pregnant I did enjoy a glass of wine with my evening meals towards the end of the week and a lunchtime glass at weekends. I’d say I drank about 12 units in total per week.

My first baby is due this summer and I want to EBF ideally, but the thought of giving up alcohol for another six months to a year is really putting me off!

I read another thread on MN recently asking people what they did the first night they arrived home from hospital with their newborns, and someone said that once the baby was asleep, they ordered a pizza with their DH and enjoyed a couple of glasses of fizz.

If I EBF is that something that will be completely off limits? I just want to enjoy the occasional glass of wine in moderation once the baby arrives basically, as I do miss it!

Also if I do EBF and don’t drink, then decide to try for another baby and get pregnant again, it could be years before I can enjoy a glass of wine!

Any thoughts welcome...

OP posts:
sel2223 · 22/02/2020 08:50

@Surfer25 you cannot be serious! Preoccupied with alcohol after giving it up completely during the pregnancy and checking first if it's ok to have a celebratory drink after the baby is born instead of just going ahead and doing it?

I can't wait for a celebratory glass of fizz 🥂

QuornQuiche · 22/02/2020 08:53

14 units a week is the general recommendation. For those saying nhs over NCT, there are other inconsistencies on the nhs website. For example they are still listing osteoporosis as a benefit of BF, whereas this has recently changed as the evidence is week.

Redwinestillfine · 22/02/2020 09:00

Yes, although when it came down to it I was just gasping for tea Grin

Cookit · 22/02/2020 09:08

I’ve always drank as normal whilst breastfeeding and so do most people I know.
The advice (Jack Newman etc) is very clear on how alcohol gets into breast milk at the rate it is in the blood - ie even after a few drinks your alcohol level is very, very low in your milk.

Cookit · 22/02/2020 09:10

But yes agree with Yes, although when it came down to it I was just gasping for tea
I did leave it a few days after giving birth both times to have a drink just because when it came to it I didn’t feel up to having even half a glass straight away after.

Surfer25 · 22/02/2020 09:12

Giving it up has never been an issue for me.

I don't understand the reliance of even having to have it at evenings and weekends

It's bizarre

Surfer25 · 22/02/2020 09:13

Packing plastic flutes to have "fizz" in a dirty postnatal ward.

How grim

Singingatmidnight · 22/02/2020 09:17

Yes you can - enjoy!

(I had such a low alcohol tolerance after being pregnant that I didn't really enjoy it unless with a big dinner though - gave me a headache otherwise!)

Frenchw1fe · 22/02/2020 09:18

Well I would always take advice from the NHS first on alcohol.

Original poster
randomquestions87 · 22/02/2020 09:18

14 units a week is the general recommendation. For those saying nhs over NCT, there are other inconsistencies on the nhs website. For example they are still listing osteoporosis as a benefit of BF, whereas this has recently changed as the evidence is week.

There are definitely inconsistencies - for example there was a link on another recent thread about this where the NHS advised no alcohol at all for three months post-birth if EBF. That completely contradicts their other advice about 14 units a week!

@QuornQuiche that's a useful link, thanks.

OP posts:
DerbyshireGirly · 22/02/2020 09:19

@Surfer25 bore off

Original poster
randomquestions87 · 22/02/2020 09:29

Here's the link to the NHS page that says it's best to "completely avoid drinking while breastfeeding for the first three months" (it's under the "what foods should I avoid while breastfeeding" tab):

www.nhs.uk/start4life/baby/breastfeeding/your-questions-answered/

OP posts:
bernardswatchplease · 22/02/2020 09:31

My tip for anyone drinking any alcohol whilst breastfeeding is Be aware of getting dehydrated. Breastfeeding gave me the most intense thirst so make sure those / that glass of something nice is followed by a few pints of water (for your thirst and dehydration not to dilute any content in your milk etc)

Ullupullu · 22/02/2020 09:34

You should trust breastfeeding expert organisations OP like La Leche League

Mammyloveswine · 22/02/2020 09:35

Course you can!

I fed for 18 months with both my dc... in fact with number 2 I had a glass of wind and a Big Mac when I got home 6 hours after he was born!

soundsystem · 22/02/2020 09:36

Don't listen to surfer25 it's a perfectly reasonable question!

As others have said, it's fine. You may or may not fancy it but there's nothing wrong with having a bottle in the fridge ready to go if you do! Labour is hard work, and late pregnancy is tiring, especially if you go over due! It's fine to treat yourself. Most people I know have had their first meal planned out (sushi, pate, very ripe stinky cheese) and most included a drink.

I had a chippie tea and a blancs de Limoux I'd been saving and it was one of the best meals I've had! (I had a home birth, before someone tells me off for stinking out the postnatal ward!)

Mydogatemypurse · 22/02/2020 09:36

Yes it might make you feel a bit sick tho. Go for half a glass and enjoy x

virginpinkmartini · 22/02/2020 09:38

@Surfer25 lol your medal is in the post. You sound like you're projecting a bit- no-one is talking about reliance- they're talking about looking forward to something that they have rightfully avoided, you know, as a treat?

I was watching the James May's Japan documentary series last night, and they were drinking frosty tankards of Asahi... And by Christ was I jealous, being 36 weeks and not able to just have some. Must mean I have a crippling dependancy.

virginpinkmartini · 22/02/2020 09:41

Also, @Surfer25, how do you know whether this is a preoccupation for OP or not? They have asked one quick question on a forum, in an effort to find out what is safe, when 99.9 percent of the rest of their daily life they probably don't give it another thought... Why are you assuming this snapshot is the bigger picture? If the OP had asked what brand of Muslin is the best, would you assume that was their number one priority in life too?

Nanalisa60 · 22/02/2020 09:53

You can have what ever you want as your will deserve it, but I bet all you will want is a cup of tea and some buttered toast!!

bobstersmum · 22/02/2020 09:57

Yes you can. Do not get drunk though, but a glass with a meal is totally fine. They used to say that the alcohol in your milk is the same as the alcohol in your blood but I'm pretty sure this has been disproved. Because if you think about it you could get leathered, express your breast milk and sell it on as alcoholic milk!

Cookit · 22/02/2020 10:14

*Giving it up has never been an issue for me.

I don't understand the reliance of even having to have it at evenings and weekends*

It’s not a reliance but going without for years seems a bit sad to me. I don’t have much social life now post DC so sharing some wine with my DH in an evening is as good as it’s going to get and is something enjoyable that I see no reason to give up when there is no good reason to give it up?

And surely making out that you have to stop drinking and give up certain foods and make whatever random lifestyle choices (most of which will be bogus) to breastfeed will just make the breastfeeding rate lower... which is a bad thing for women and babies.

Cookit · 22/02/2020 10:22

They used to say that the alcohol in your milk is the same as the alcohol in your blood but I'm pretty sure this has been disproved

No this is right .. which is why it’s ok to drink. You’d be so drunk you’d likely be dead to have a blood alcohol level of 0.5% .. which is the same alcohol level sometimes found in orange juice.
Having one or two drinks generally would give you a level of less than 0.05% ... so you’re then giving a baby milk that is 0.05% alcohol (and falling pretty fast with each hour). That compares to 10% ish in wine or 40% in something like vodka. That’s why it’s a non issue.

We3kingsoforientareandabump · 22/02/2020 10:27

Perfectly fine to drink normally when BF (unless you normally drink yourself into a coma) just no bedsharing

QuornQuiche · 22/02/2020 10:28

@randomquestions87 thank you, I was looking for that link but couldn't find it. Thought I might have dreamed it. It's worth looking at a range of evidence based info to help make an informed decision, rather than just anecdotal.