Cheers!

During December holidays a glass to accompany dinner or to wish the best is a must. Often breastfeeding women are advised to absolutely not drink any alcohol at all or to pump and dump, but is that advise valid? Alcohol does transfer into milk in very small amounts. The concentration of alcohol in milk reflects the amount in mothers’ blood. If moms drinks one standard consumption with say 8% alcohol, her blood and her milk will contain 0.2 per mille. This is too little to affect her child. According to Hale (2010) moms alcohol in blood needs to be 3 per mille to negatively affect her baby. With these amounts driving a car is illegal (in The Netherlands) and one could wonder if a woman who is thought to be not able to drive a car is able to be responsible for the care of an infant. Chronic and heavy alcohol consumers are advised against breastfeeding, but an occasional glass at a festive dinner or to welcome  the New year can be enjoyed without fear. To be absolutely sure one can choose to delay breastfeeding to about 2 hours after consuming one glass of alcoholic beverage. Research has shown that children consume less milk at breast as long as mom has alcohol in her blood and her milk, but that they catch up in the hours following that. Merry and safe Holidays and a Happy and healthy 2011!
Hale T: Medications and Mothers’ Milk, Hale Publishing, Amarillo TX, 200813, p 382-384