Drinking a Margarita or two.....is It Safe??

alcohol is not any worse than a lot of medications that are given to bf women. I would definitely limit to less than 2.

Hi V.,
DO you have some frozen milk stored up, I know you said exclusive breastmilk, but I didn't know if you give it in a bottle ever. If you go out at night & have some drinks you probably won't want to nurse until the next morning. Also this is something I tried it's called Milkscreen it's these little strips that you put a few drops of you brestmilk on & if alcohol is present the strip will turn colors. You can get it at Babies R'Us. I drank a margarita at around 6:30 & was fine by 10:30 when I pumped, but I used stored milk the rest of the night just to be safe.

I'm still breastfeeding my 15 month old and occasionally drink 1 beer with dinner. I'd say if you're planning on drinking more, pump/feed before you leave for dinner and then feed your baby the "pumped" milk. Once you return from dinner and having your margaritas (every mom deserves a treat!!!), just pump and dump that milk (as hard as that is to waste breast milk).

Enjoy your night out!

I think I'm the minority here. I had too many friends who had trouble breastfeeding, and I was blessed with a big supply. I didn't want to do anything to make that change (and any alcohol -- especially liquor -- dehydrates you). I didn't want to chance passing it on to my son, and it was like liquid gold to me, so I certainly didn't want to pump and dump, and I didn't want to chance losing any of my supply. It just wasn't worth it to me. We went out and enjoyed ourselves without the drinks, and then we never had to worry. This is controversial as some lactation nurses/associations say it's not an issue and some say it is. It's one of thos things that you know you're taking a chance if you decide to go through with it. JMHO

La Leche League is one of the most well known lactation associations around. You can look them up on the internet and contact them with this question. Also, Kay at The Nesting Place in Grapevine would be a great person to ask. She's an RN and a lactation consultant. Good luck and have fun whether you decide to drink or not.

The alcohol concentration in your breast milk is the same as what is in your blood. One margarita and I could still walk a tight rope while doing a calculus problem - no issues... and I drank a total of maybe 6 (one at a time, over the span of almost 2 years) while I was breastfeeding my first. No problems.

My baby was born with problems - I didn't drink or take any medication during the two years I breast fed him. It seemed like his system was having enough issues that even a little more might be too much.

S.

If I drank anything with liqour in it, I wouldn't BF. I would drink no more than 1 beer or one glass of wine and still BF. This was something that I was always concerned about, so I generally just didn't drink anything until I stopped BF. On the rare occasion I knew I wanted to have a drink or 2, then I pumped right before leaving and stored the milk. Then I pumped and tossed the milk the next morning. Hope this helps! Have a great time with your hubby!

Go out and enjoy yourself. Just don't go overboard with the drinks. YOu might find that one is all you want to have. I drank a bottle of beer each day I breastfed because of the brewers yeast and vitamin B (never was a beer drinker only during the nursing) and she was fine. Do enjoy your alone time together and have fun. The other S.

Here is what the lactation consultant told me....

what ever your blood alcohol level is, is the same level in your breast milk. As your body filters the alcohol out of your blood it does the same for your breast milk. thus there is really no reason at all to pump and dump. So that being said if you time it just right there should be no problem at all, as long as you dont have more than 2. By the time you feed next time it should be ok. If you can still feel the effects of your drink, then dont feed. dont let people scare you, a couple is perfectly ok. have fun and enjoy yourself.

It's FINE!! Have fun!!!

i did it! it didn't hurt the baby. go have a good time. if you feel nervous, pump some milk ahead of time for a night feeding (allowing one hour for each drink to leave your system). but overall, it should be just fine and dandy!

I think my doctor had even told me one was OK. I'd stick with one drink if you want to err on the side of caution (unless your going to dump and pump). Especially if you are talking about the usually large frozen margaritas you get at most Mexican restaurants.

From everything I've read, 1-2 drinks is perfectly safe and there is NO need to pump & dump. www.kellymom.com has some excellent info on all aspects of breastfeeding. Here is what they say on the subject:

Current research says that occasional use of alcohol (1-2 drinks) is not harmful to the nursing baby. The American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Drugs classifies alcohol (ethanol) as a “Maternal Medication Usually Compatible With Breastfeeding.”

It is recommended that nursing moms avoid breastfeeding during and for 2-3 hours after drinking (Hale 2002).

There is no need to pump & dump milk after drinking alcohol, other than for mom's comfort -- pumping & dumping does not speed the elimination of alcohol from the milk.

In general, if you are sober enough to drive, you are sober enough to breastfeed. Less than 2% of the alcohol consumed by the mother reaches her blood and milk. Alcohol does not accumulate in breastmilk, but leaves the milk as it leaves the blood; so when your blood alcohol levels are back down, so are your milk alcohol levels. (This is why there is no need to pump & dump).

All this is from the page: http://www.kellymom.com/health/lifestyle/alcohol.html

And personally, I would have a couple drinks occasionally when I was nursing (maybe 1-2 drinks every couple weeks). Never enough to be drunk or anything -but since you haven't been drinking in a while, be aware that your tolerance is probably down a bit.

Have fun and enjoy yourself!

I agree with much of what has been said, that it's okay to have one or two in moderation. Just an additional warning, though: in the interest of enjoying your evening out with your husband, take it easy for your own sake! The first time I decided to "live it up" with my husband--I think DD was maybe 4 mos old--I had two glasses of wine, passed out cold, and woke up the next morning with a hangover! From two glasses of wine! Remember that your system hasn't seen ANY liquor (I hope!) in well over a year, so it will affect you much more than it did before. So take it easy, and enjoy your date night!

I drank a glass of wine and it was ok. I think 1 is fine. Of course you can always pump and dump.

You should ask your doctor this question. I was always told that if I drank alcohol even in moderation, then it was best to pump & dump the next one to two feedings. Honestly, it just isn't worth the possibility of intoxicating an infant! I breastfed for 11 months and just swore off drinking any alcohol the entire time. And guess what? I still went out with my hubby and enjoyed myself!

I'm pretty conservative when it comes to what my kids eat. I even make my own baby food and popsicles. However, I had a margarita a few times with my first. Then I have had a couple of pina coladas (one at a time) with the one I'm nursing now. I tried to nurse them well before I drank those evenings. Then I tried to wait as long as possible before the next nursing. One thing to say though. My kids always slept well after that nursing. Seeing as my three year old is desperately trying to learn to read right now (and doing well without mom's pushing), I don't think it hurt him any.