Breastfeeding Myths: A Breastfeeding Mom Can't Have Alcohol

In recent years, breastfeeding has become a more popular choice for many mothers that desire to offer their child the best possible start in life. However, breastfeeding myths still seem to prevail. In part four of this series; we'll explore the commonly held myth that a nursing mother can't drink.

Be honest, after 9 months of "being good" you're craving a margarita, but you can't have one since you're breastfeeding, right? Wrong! The American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Drugs and Chemicals and Human Milk has stated that alcohol is compatible with breastfeeding.

Now, before you flood my comments with hateful remarks. I wouldn't encourage you to go out and get hammered, but occasional, moderate alcohol intake will not harm your baby as very little is passed through your milk.

Less than 2 percent of the alcohol will enter a woman's bloodstream and, therefore, her milk and the amount of alcohol will peak about an hour after consuming the beverage. I was told that my blood alcohol would be the proof of my breastmilk. Since most states consider you drunk at a blood alcohol of .08 percent, you can see how little alcohol there would actually be in your milk. In the old days, women were told to "pump and dump", but the alcohol doesn't remain in the breast milk after the body metabolizes it. The general rule of thumb is if you are sober enough to drive, you are sober enough to breastfeed.

There is still a good deal of debate on whether or not there is a benefit to drinking beer while breastfeeding. Some studies seem to indicate that beer consumption may increase milk production and letdown, although numerous other studies indicate that any alcohol, including beer, are more likely to reduce a woman's milk production.