Jump to content

Recommended Posts

As there seem to be a lot of threads about BF, I think many of us are at the 'very young' baby stage. I'm in two minds even now posting this, as it could be an emotive issue (and I remember the furore on the smoking when pregnant thread :~) )but here goes:


The official advice now for alcohol when feeding is 1-2 units, 1-2 times a week. This is new since my first baby, when all sorts of levels were deemed 'safe' even up to 2 bottles of wine (in one sitting!!!). But this official advice is followed by the guidance that as long as you leave 2-3 hours before feeding, all the alcohol is gone.


So does this mean that effectively you can drink more often than the guidelines, as long as you have long enough before you have to feed again, and a couple of times a week you can feed and drink at the same time??


This is where I'm not sure I want to hear other opinions, but lets see!

Link to comment
https://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/topic/14327-breastfeeding-and-alcohol/
Share on other sites

Personally I tend to use my own judgment on this and ignore the specific advice. With my first baby I was probably more conservative with regards to drinking, but I really haven't worried about it as much with the second. I really didn't much feel like drinking much certainly the first 3 months when the babies were really little. But I breastfed my first child until 27 months and plan to do the same with the second. It's very difficult to abstain from alcohol completely when feeding for that long and I feel that the benefits of breastfeeding probably outweigh the negatives of moderate drinking. To be honest after a hard day with 2 kids I really look forward to a glass of red and a sit down and the de-stressing has to be a good thing. I am sure as long as you are not really downing pints then the baby will be fine.
Apparently 'La Leche' (sp?) recommends as much as you would drink if driving... which is disappointing as I can't drive even on half a pint. But I think it's the most sensible, easy-to-apply advice I have heard. Didn't stop me drinking half a bottle last night....
All I know is the other night I had a glass of white wine and a glass of Prosecco and woke up with massive headache. I would say stick to what you enjoy within reason and you cant go too far wrong. By the way was anyone else asked by midwifes at Kings whether they had alcohol while pregnant? They asked me and I said yes (not to excess obviously) but found odd question to ask someone who had JUST given birth.

I don't know where I got this from, but I seem to remember hearing that even having drunk a bottle of wine (yes, a bottle) it was still better to breastfeed than not.

Please don't get cross with me, I'm not saying I advocate that, but personally I would cheerfully drink a couple of units very regularly (most evenings).

My daughter is 10 mths and when I did the BF workshop at Kings last December, the two midwives that ran it said that you would need to drink the equivalent of 2 bottles of wine for your breastmilk to be effected!! Seemed rather excessive and I couldn't drink that at the best of times but it was a nice fact! I spoke to a GP friend about it, she hadn't heard the 2 bottles statistic (and thought it excessive), her advice was it's fine in moderation, not to BF if feel tipsy. Seemed sensible advice to me and far more realistic than the 1-2 units 1-2 times a week!
Thanks Ladies - you all seem to have the same opinion as me. So it was the BF workshop I got the 2 bottles stat from! Like you Supergolden, 2 glasses is my absolute limit anyway (and borders the headache territory anyway) so I shall continue to enjoy a glass when I feel like it rather than thinking "this is the 3rd one this week - should I?"

I remember being told the "bottle of wine is fine" thing in both the breastfeeding workshop and my NCT class.


In fact, embarrasingly, at the end of my NCT course the teacher went round the room asking what thing we had learnt had really stuck in our mind, and the only thing I could think of was that I could drink a bottle of wine and still breastfeed :-$ You can take a girl out of New Zealand...


When feeding both of mine I did have the odd glass of wine, but like others found that one, maybe two glasses was my limit before I either got a headache or fell asleep on the sofa! Even now, 2.5 years after having my youngest, I can only manage a glass or two.

My tolerance was very very low for the first 2 months PP, but I am happy (and slightly ashamed) to report that as much as half a bottle (rare, though) produces only a very mild and fleeting morning hangover. If having wine, I have it immediately after baby goes to bed, and then sober up before (my) bedtime....Or - I have a pint while feeding her (if out for lunch on weekend) - I read alcohol in milk is at its max about 1.5 hours after drinking it, so I figure if she feeds quickly I may just be ok. I do get some disgusted stares from pub goers, though.... I just have the one!!


ladywotlunches - I definitely think you should enjoy one when you fancy it and not keep a week long tally. Having said that, I'm going to try and restrict alcohol to the weekend in future though... it's just become too much of a crutch in the evenings....slippery slope and all that....

I was surprised about how little of what we consume makes it through to our breastmilk...


Like littleEDfamily I will have a beer if I'm out for lunch at the weekend (often whilst feeding) and will have a beer or two or a couple of small glasses of wine after baby Knomester has gone to bed in the evening so that by the time I feed him again around 3am or 4am I doubt there'd be much left in my system.

I would agree with your interpretation too. Personally, in the early months when my son was feeding a lot through the night I couldn't really contemplate more than a small glass of wine in the evening (too knackered!). But once he'd dropped all of the night feeds, or at least wasn't feeding until at least 3 or 4 am I figured having a few drinks in the evening wasn't a problem.

My missus went to a thing at St Thomas', and was told that there was no evidence that drinking did no damage, so you shouldn't drink at all. Wish she'd gone to Kings!


That said, on the very few occasions that she's had a couple of glasses of wine in the last 18 months, she's woken up feeling rotten. And this from a lass who used to be able to have it large!

I'm so glad you started this thread - it feels like such a taboo thing to ask/talk about to me. There is so much conflicting information about this on the internet, and I've been unsure what to believe!


I've been feeling guilty for indulging in the second glass of wine, and have also felt guilty if it's more than 2 nights a week! But I definitely think that if little one is asleep for at least 4 hours in the evening, if I have a couple of glasses after he's just eaten then surely that should be okay? It's good to read other people think the same thing.

radnrach - I'm glad that the thread has gone the way I hoped!! :) Like you say, lots of conflicting info, and like the St Thomas' 'double negative' advice just to keep us feeling really guilty about everything, no medical professional would dare give a straight answer.


Bottoms up!

  • 5 years later...

The blood alcohol percentage for driving in Northern Ireland for example, is 0.08% - couldn't find UK one on wikipedia


If the pro rata amount of alcohol to breast milk ratio (0.08%) was passed on to a baby I (personally) very much doubt this would have any effect. Layman's logic applied.


You would have to multiply the drink driving limit by 10 for your baby to be drinking anywhere near 1% alcohol in its tiny "bottle" of milk size measure. This may be where the two bottles of wine being ok comes from.


But what the scientists are saying is that they cannot prove it has no effect (which is extremely difficult to do) - hence caution in a litigious society.


Obviously I'm not a doctor, or I wouldn't be writing this - so take it with a pinch of alcohol.

Isn't it a bit odd that alcohol is such a common way to relax? It's not good for you and can't be good for your baby.

Why not find other ways to relax?


Is it too hard to just not drink alcohol at all? If you're asking the question, surely you know something's not right....

I read this above - "To be honest after a hard day with 2 kids I really look forward to a glass of red and a sit down and the de-stressing has to be a good thing."



isn't it more "odd" to want to justify how much you can actually get away with drinking around children?

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Latest Discussions

    • And now we have the worst labour government in many many decades who by moving to your position on the right are ushering in a far right reform government. Well done you.
    • You implied he did a good job in your first paragraph when you said you would have hated to see Corbyn lead the country through Covid - the alternative being Johnson, presumably? With the results we all saw. Unite - you have a problem with unions? Who work hard to see that their members get a fair deal in their workplace? How exactly are these people and groups "all as bad as each other"? In what way? Labour "purging their party of the far-left" has given us a weak prime minister who has apparently deserted any "left" (aka caring for other people and having decent moral principles) leanings he ever had. Which is why people appear to be leaving Labour in droves and voting, or intending to vote, Green or Lib Dem or for an independent Left candidate. Starmer has shot himself in the foot, in my opinion. But what would I know. What worked?! I don't know enough about what you are talking about to comment, but "believing" you know the reason someone did something does not make it true. I don't believe that Corbyn ever got "starstruck" or "forgot about his politics", but if you can provide evidence that those things are true, then fair enough. I don't think you can, though.
    • I think you need to get a grip If it's who I am thinking of, she's a young black girl in her twenties, has braids with bright colours through them and - I suspect - works with her father. It's always the same man behind the wheel and he's older than her, always in the same van, so I'm assuming it's a father-daughter combo which, if it is, I think is rather sweet.  They hustle hard in a job that is poorly paid, has little prospects, is relentless and thankless. The fact that they have stuck it out since the pandemic says a lot about them.  I think she's a lovely girl, who's perhaps a little shy - but she'll smile or chat back if you make the effort with her. And I admire her for sticking with that job for so long. Perhaps she's just one of these people who's naturally a bit clumsy or bashes things, the same way some people are heavy on their feet when they walk. But I wouldn't dream of jeopardising her job because she closes the slams the gate and doesn't 'kiss' the ring doorbell with her fingers.  Perhaps she's being passive aggressive because you are. And perhaps she also wishes she got to spend her time worrying about potential damage to her letterbox or her gate.  As for your gate / letterbox - you're talking about hypotheticals. Has there been any damage? No. Then go and live your life and worry about it when it happens.  (apols we have the wrong person, but some of my points still stand). 
    • Greg did an amazing job! He built a cabinet in my living room and added shelving. A lovely guy and perfectionist who goes the extra mile. He really understands what you want and comes up with various options to meet your price range. Would highly recommend!
Home
Events
Sign In

Sign In



Or sign in with one of these services

Search
×
    Search In
×
×
  • Create New...