Cooking Sherry While Nursing?

2 Tablespoons? You could have taken them by mouth and it would not have done anything. A glass of orange juice probably has more alcohol in it than is left in those beans. I would not even sweat it for a minute!
Good luck!

I wouldn't worry about it at all. I may make some upset here, but I had a glass of wine or two while pregnant and have a happy and healthy 10-month-old son. I also had a drink or two while nursing. Although if I had a drink I would wait an hour or so before nursing. You put such a little amount in the food that I don't think it will be a problem.

No need to stress out over that!
I don't think you are endangering your baby even drinking a half glass of wine every once in a while, even while pregnant. (not every day!!) 2 TB in an entire serving of food???? NO worries at all.

I even know moms who Swear by having a half glass an hour or so before nursing to relax... they say it helps with "let down" when you are stressed out.

I think if there is any alcohol left in the beans, per serving it will be a very miniscule amount. I would not worry about it--I think you'll be fine. Enjoy your dinner!

In most 1st world countries drinking small amounts of alcohol while pregnant (as in a glass here and there) is the accepted (and widely tested) norm. The problem is that our country is very all or nothing. There's no way to quantify a "small amount". For some a glass of wine is 4 oz, for another it's 8 or even 16. Then you have beers that run from 2% - 14%, hard alcohols that run from aperitifs to everclear. (It a problem the UK has... because the people want the Health people to actually write a limit in black and white... and that's impossible). In orer to actually get black and white numbers scientific testing would have to be done on 10's of thousands of woman (and therefore their fetuses) and NO ONE wants that. Because in order to test scientifically there would have to be a high range, which would sentance hundreds or even thousands of infants to FAE or FAS.

What is very well known, however, is that

1) Most women are drinking "normally" (aka for them) during the time in which their babies are ***most*** susceptible to birth defects caused by alcohol (aka the first 6-8 weeks), and then quit when they find out they're pregnant. So drinking normally during the danger period, and then not at all when the fetus is less susceptible to alcohol is rather like locking the barn door after the horses have run out.

2) Women that drink "small" (defined at 1-4 servings of alcohol per week or less, but not all in one sitting, and not "strong" alcohol... you see why definitions get difficult) go on to have perfectly healthy infants. Think BAC of .01 or .02 or less. But even then, we have no idea of the range. It might be .04, or higher even at .08... but lord only knows because no researcher nor pregnant mum in their right mind would participate in such a study.

So less than a drop of alcohol per serving in the beans... most of which has cooked off?

Yeah honey, you're fine.

<laughing> mis read your Q. NURSING? Yeah, you're so okay it's a complete non-issue. In fact, many lactation consultants reccomend drinking a glass of beer or wine before nursing. It takes about an hour to get into your milk, and then another 30-60 minutes to clear your milk. So you can drink right before or durning nursing, and as long as you're not cluster feeding, it won't pass through your milk at all.

While I was nursing my daughter because she was so high strung I was told to drink a small glass of wine while I was nursing her b/c it would relax me and in turn she would be more relaxed. she's now a super smart 8.5 yr old.

you're fine baby will be fine. It's not going to hurt her. What they don't want you to do is go out and get sloshed and then come home and nurse.

I wouldn't worry, some woman drink wine during their pregnancies and claim to have healthy children. I am not big on drinking while preg but in your case there wasn't much added to your food.

Drinking in small reasonable amounts while breast feeding is not an issue at all. FAS is a problem for babies when their mothers drink while they are preganant, and no known amount of alcohol is a safe threshold to prevent FAS, some drink heaviliy and thier children don't have it, some dring moderately and they do, but nursing is not a problem.

You are probably more to worry about how much sodium cooking sherry has in it or that the beans could make your baby gassy than how much alcohol was left in a couple of table spoons for a whole pot of beans.

Not to worry, eat if your baby tolerates the beans, and have a beer or a glass of wine with it if you want to and like it.

M.

I'd say it depends on how you are cooking the dish and at what stage the alcohol is added. For anything where it's added early on and it simmers and bubbles awhile, the alcohol evaporates off in the steam. That's how distilling works. You warm a weak alcohol solution till the alcohol boils off (it's boiling point is lower than water), then condense the alcohol steam by cooling it and you have moon shine. I wouldn't worry about it. You are probably have more contact with alcohol from your average mouth wash that you are from your beans recipe.