Sadly  there have been some incidents lately where women have been accused of breastfeeding their infants while intoxicated.  Last week, one of those mothers plead guilty to charges of child neglect for breastfeeding her child while she was drunk.

While these cases are extreme, it does bring to light the question of alcohol and breastfeeding.  Unfortunately some mothers mistakenly think that they can consume alcohol and breastfeed without any possible negative effects on their baby.  Obviously this is not true, but not terribly surprising given that there are no consistent guidelines regarding alcohol consumption for women that may be breastfeeding.

Ethanol from alcoholic drinks can move quickly from the mother’s bloodstream within an hour of ingestion. Depending on the person’s metabolism and how much alcohol was consumed over time, it can take two or more hours for the alcohol to leave the mother’s system.  It is important to remember that alcohol is not trapped in breast milk, and as long as the mother has measureable blood alcohol levels, the breast milk will also contain alcohol.  Draining the breasts by ‘Pumping and Dumping’ will not remove the alcohol from the breast milk and if a child is breastfeeding during this time, they can receive up to about one fifth of the amount present in the blood.

Because of the inconsistent guidelines surrounding alcohol and breastfeeding and the fact that every woman’s metabolism is different, the only way to tell if there is alcohol in your breast milk is with the Milkscreen home test. 

Julie, co founder of UpSpring Baby and inventor of the Milkscreen home test for alcohol in breast milk, shares her favorite ‘parent invented’ nursing products at Babies “R” Us.  Watch the video »
 

Ever wondered who was the mastermind behind our Milkscreen home test for alcohol in breast milk?  Well watch this video and you can hear from Julie Jumonville herself.  Julie is the mother of two and the inventor of Milkscreen.  In the video Julie talks candidly about why she invented Milkscreen as well as some of the common myths surrounding alcohol and breastfeeding.

Enjoy!

If you pick up the March issue of Pregnancy & Newborn magazine you will see the Milkscreen home test for alcohol in breast milk featured as a “Mommy Must Have” in their Cravings section. 

Happy Shopping!

An awesome application for your iPhone or iPod touch to make life as a nursing mom easier. You already have so much to remember and think about with your new baby, keeping track of breastfeeding shouldn’t be adding stress to your life!
 
Baby Tracker: Nursing keeps track of your nursing sessions with just a few clicks, allowing you to relax and focus on feeding your baby without worrying about lists and sheets of paper, stop-watches and safety pins in your bra, or extraneous ribbons and bracelets!

Baby Tracker: Nursing is a real time tool. With just a few clicks your nursing session is recorded: length of time and the side you nursed on (or both), always noting which side you nursed on last!

A detailed nursing history is always right in front of you and permanently stored in daily logs for future reference. And since it’s on your iPhone or iPod touch you always have it with you! 

Features

– Easy start/stop timer for the Left and Right nursing sides.

– Promotion of proper alternate side nursing with both visual cues (safety pins) and simple Begin (alternate) side functionality.

– Multiple baby support (up to 6), with names and easy switching (slide your finger left or right).

– Nursing history log grouped by day.

– Add new nursing sessions manually without using the timer or edit previous saved sessions.

– Record bottle feedings by type (Formula/Milk), volume (oz/mL), and amount.

– Twin and triplet support to easily nurse from one baby to the next.

– Change the background color to (Pink, Blue, Green, or Gray).

– Full day summary of nursing times and session counts, ready to show your doctor or lactation consultant.

– Last Feeding time is always visible so you know when the next feeding should be.

Baby Tracker: Nursing application is available at the iPhone App Store and cost to download the application is $7.99.  For more information visit http://www.andesigned.net/

Q/MilkscreenMoms:  What is the most common reason that women stop breastfeeding?

A/Gerhart:  There are many reasons moms give for why they stop breastfeeding and most of the time it is because they want to regain a ‘normal’ life.  By normal life I mean a time when the mother is not dictated by breastfeeding, pumping, sleep schedules and dietary restrictions.

Q/MilkscreenMoms:  You mention dietary restrictions and we commonly hear of alcohol as one of these restrictions for women that are nursing.  As a breastfeeding educator, what is realistic in regards to alcohol consumption post delivery?

A/Gerhart:  One of the most common questions I hear from women is ‘can I occasionally drink while breastfeeding my baby?’  Moms have given up drinking for nine months or longer during conception and pregnancy but are worried about passing anything negative to their baby.  Most women are often advised to ‘wait’ before breastfeeding their babies after consuming alcohol; but ‘waiting’ is vague and most moms don’t have a lot of time, so they end up pumping and dumping their breast milk.

Q/MilkscreenMoms:  Does pumping and dumping remove alcohol from breast milk?

A/Gerhart:  No.  As alcohol leaves the bloodstream, it also leaves the breast milk.  Since alcohol is not ‘trapped’ in breast milk (it returns to the bloodstream as mother’s blood alcohol level declines), pumping and dumping will not remove it.  Pumping and dumping, drinking a lot of water, resting, or drinking coffee will not speed up the rate of the elimination of alcohol from your body.  Plus depending on the amount of alcohol consumed, pumping and dumping may be unnecessary.  If mom took the time to pump she certainly does not want to waste that precious breast milk.

Q/MilkscreenMoms:  So if waiting is too vague and pumping and dumping doesn’t actually remove alcohol from breast milk, what are other options for women?

A/Gerhart:  Of course there is abstinence but as I mentioned before some women choose to stop breastfeeding rather than abstain completely.  However, all experts recommend doing everything possible to maximize the period of time that mom breastfeeds her baby.  For women that want to occasionally consume alcohol but also continue breastfeeding, we tell them about Milkscreen.  I’ve found that many of our clients actually continue breastfeeding much longer than they would have otherwise due to their ability to test their breast milk after enjoying an occasional glass of wine without fearing the effects on their baby. 

Thank you Gabriela for your time.  We know a lot of women are going to benefit from this valuable information. 

I recently read an article in The New Yorker Magazine by Jill Lepore entitled “If breast is best, why are women bottling their milk?”  The article is filled with lots of interesting facts about the history of breastfeeding and is a great read for everyone interested in this subject. 

To read the complete article visit http://budurl.com/nykrms, and be sure to look for the Milkscreen home test for alcohol mention in the article.

The American Academy of Pediatricians (AAP) recommends that women exclusively breastfeed their infants for the first six months and support breastfeeding for the first year and beyond if mutually desired by mother and child. For women who want to partake in occasional alcohol use during this extended period of time, Milkscreen provides a valuable tool to tell them when it is best to not breastfeed baby after consuming alcohol.

The American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Drugs considers alcohol compatible with breastfeeding. The AAP and the British National Health Service agree that an occasional alcoholic drink probably will not hurt baby, but a mother who chooses to have a drink should wait at least two hours before breastfeeding.  Because everyone metabolizes alcohol differently, women may want more precise information about how their own bodies are processing alcohol, and how much is getting into their breast milk. Milkscreen is the only test that lets a woman know if there is alcohol in her breast milk.  The Milkscreen test shows a color change at 0.02%. This is a level of alcohol that according to leading medical experts may impact baby’s sleeping and eating behaviors.  If you obtain a positive test result with Milkscreen you should find an alternative food source (preferably stored breast milk) for baby until you can retest and obtain a negative test result.

Breastfeeding gives your baby the best possible start in life, and all experts recommend doing everything possible to maximize the period of time that mom and baby participate in this health-giving activity. Milkscreen was invented by a mom to help extend the life of breastfeeding and ease some of the restrictions that can discourage women from continuing to breastfeed, while keeping their babies healthy. Dr. Jack Newman of the Newman Breastfeeding Clinic & Institute and La Leche League International Health Advisory Council says that “prohibiting alcohol is another way we make life unnecessarily restrictive for nursing mothers and that reasonable alcohol intake should not be discouraged at all.”

For more information and research on the effects of alcohol on breast milk we invite you to visit “The Facts” section on our website.

Milkscreen does not condone alcohol abuse or excessive drinking. If you or someone you know is drinking alcohol excessively, please contact your doctor immediately.