Is it safe to drink alcohol and breastfeed? As physicians, we have always cautioned patients not to. As mothers, we look forward to the occasional glass of wine.
We also know that drinking while breastfeeding remains a controversial and very personal choice, one for which many mothers find themselves judged by friends and family.
Does beer increase milk supply?
A breastfeeding mother.
Photo credit: Photo I Pool
Alcohol consumption may cause a woman’s breasts to feel fuller, giving the illusion of enhanced milk production when in fact there is less milk transferring to the baby.
How much alcohol will reach your baby?
The legal driving limit for blood alcohol concentration in many cities is 0.05 per cent. This correlates to 50 mg of alcohol in 100 ml of blood. Because the amount of alcohol present in your breast milk is closely related to the amount of alcohol in your bloodstream, the amount transferred to your baby depends upon your blood alcohol level at the time of nursing.
For example: If your baby drinks 100 ml of breast milk while you have a blood alcohol level of 0.05 per cent, your baby will consume 50 mg of alcohol. For a 5 kg baby, this is 0.001 per cent of their body weight in alcohol.
Put another way: a standard drink (defined as one 355 ml can of beer, one 150 ml glass of wine or 45 ml of hard liquor) contains approximately 14,000 mg of alcohol. If your baby drinks 100 ml of breast milk while you have a blood alcohol concentration of 0.05 per cent, this is nearly equivalent to your baby drinking 1.5 ml of beer, or 0.5 ml of wine or 0.2 ml of hard liquor.
Wait at least two hours before nursing
However, studies do show that occasional alcohol consumption (defined as less than one drink per day) is unlikely to be harmful .
‘Pumping and dumping’ doesn’t work
The alcohol content of your breast milk will remain closely correlated to the alcohol content in your bloodstream. As long as you have alcohol in your bloodstream, you will likely have alcohol in your breast milk.
Pumping your breast milk then throwing it away after you consume alcohol does not decrease the amount of alcohol in your breast milk.
Photo credit: Pooloup
Pumping and dumping may be beneficial for the mother only to relieve the discomfort of full breasts and to help maintain breast milk supply.
The bottom line of personal choice
If you have alcohol in your bloodstream, you will likely have alcohol in your breast milk. Most studies indicate that breastfeeding when your blood alcohol concentration is below the legal driving limit likely does not cause harm to the baby
It remains a personal choice whether or not you decide to have alcohol in moderation while breastfeeding.
After reviewing the medical evidence, some of us have chosen to enjoy the occasional alcoholic drink while breastfeeding. But we have carefully timed any alcohol consumption to reduce the amount of alcohol present in the breast milk.
By Stephanie Liu - Clinical Lecturer, Department of Family Medicine, University of Alberta
Erin Manchuk - Clinical Academic Colleague, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Alberta
Shannon Ruzycki - Clinical Lecturer, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Calgary
