25 Aug Can Mothers Drink Alcohol While Breastfeeding?
A healthy lifestyle and a nutritious diet are needed when you’re breastfeeding your newborn babies. There are some drinks and foods that are off-limits during this time.
There are mixed opinions about whether it is allowed to drink alcohol when breastfeeding. Here are some possible effects of drinking alcohol while breastfeeding:
- Decreased milk production
- Effects on baby’s sleep patterns and development
What Experts Say?
A 2013 study about alcohol and breastfeeding concluded that the effects of long-term exposure to alcohol during breastfeeding remain unknown, adding that special precautions for lactating women are unnecessary.
Meanwhile, some health experts believe that no level of alcohol in breast milk is considered for a baby to drink.
There are suggestions that babies exposed to one drink a day might have impaired motor development.
There is a belief that consuming an alcoholic beverage can increase breastmilk production. However, experts noted that there is a decrease in supply and babies drink about 20% less breastmilk because of the presence of alcohol in their mothers’ milk.
A study published in 2018 cited mothers who drank while breastfeeding have children with reduced cognitive abilities, which were observed at age 6 or 7.
What Moms Can Do?
Experts recommend that alcohol consumption for mothers should be occasional and moderate.
The recommended amount of liquor consumption should be two ounces. For beers, it should be two beers, and for wine, it should only be 8 ounces. These recommendations are for women weighing 130 lb. The number of hours you should wait before you decide to breastfeed your baby again depends on your body weight. After drinking alcohol, moms should wait at least 2 hours before breastfeeding their babies again.
You could choose alternatives for alcoholic beverages if you decided to be off alcoholic drinks while breastfeeding.
SOURCE:
https://www.healthline.com/health/parenting/breastfeeding-and-alcohol#takeaway