I live in (Canada’s version of) wine country here in the Okanagan. It’s lovely! There are literally six wineries within walking distance of our house and in the summers we can go for tastings and then just log-roll down the hill to get back home instead of having to call a taxi.
I am actually not that much of a drinker. I’ll imbibe if we’re out for a girls’ night and there are bellinis on the menu, and I enjoy a cool, crisp glass of white wine on a hot summer’s afternoon, as well as a splash of Bailey’s in my coffee after a fancy dinner at a swanky restaurant. Aside from that, I live a pretty dry life.
That being said, I craved a glass of white wine HARDCORE in the final months of my pregnancy, what with the 40 degree summer heat and the fact that if you tell me I can’t have something, it makes me want it with every ounce of my deprived soul.
This weekend I finally uncorked a bottle of Riesling when we had some friends over for dinner and my, oh, my, it was some sweet goodness! I had two glasses over the course of the evening and really enjoyed it. Then I kind of panicked and Googled “alcohol and breast-feeding” just to see if I was going to make my baby a drunkard from my milk. The information I found was, of course, conflicted. Some sites said it was best to completely avoid alcohol while nursing; others said it was fine within moderation.
I don’t plan to drink much more while I’m breast-feeding (and yes, even though I am pumping exclusively I still consider myself a breast-feeder since I am feeding my baby what comes out of my breasts) now that I’ve had my forbidden glass of white wine.
I’m curious, though. What was your approach to alcohol consumption while you were nursing your baby?
I think it’s ok in moderation. The day my daughter was born, my midwife said I could have a beer, especially a dark beer like Guiness, because it would help bring my milk in. She recommended that I drink just AFTER I nursed, so baby woudn’t get the booze OR if I remember correctly, two hours before nursing. I think it’s fine in moderation. I’ve also read that it’s ok to drink a lot and then pump and dump the next feeding. I have a friend who recently read a European book on pregnancy and in that book, they said it was fine to have one alcoholic beverage a week while pregnant.
I’m of the moderation camp. As long I’m only having a drink or two, I think is fine, and I too have avoided nursing on occasion because I got a little carried away.
It’s interesting. I’ve even had people tell me I can have a glass of wine occasionally while pregnant. I tell them not to tempt me because all I want is a nice glass of red these days. In fact….before I knew I was pregnant I definitely had a few glasses while camping. So, I think it’s safe in small doses.
Same as most of the others…moderation, have the drink right after nursing/pumping and pump and dump if I got carried away and felt bad. I always had a stock in the freezer anyway.
Mmm, wine.
i’d only drink after i’ve drained the ladies. our stance (at our LLL anyway!) was if you can feel it, they can drink it.
Like Ali, I barely remember but I know I did have a few glasses. I also know I worried more about it with my first than with my second.
I used to have the occasional drink…kept it pretty low but I tried not to stress about it. I had to laugh, in the last weeks of pregnancy, I used to smell Mark’s beer. And I hate beer!!!
You know what…I totally don’t even remember. How sad is that?
I do drink wine daily – I always have – and I can count two times that I decided to pump and dump as I was extra-leery of my “toxicity” on those occasions. Otherwise, I wasn’t worried about my 1-2 glass consumption and nursing. It didn’t appear to have any adverse reactions on baby’s sleep or digestion.
Man, I love wine…
I’d be a raging alcoholic if I lived where you do! I had a beer or glass of wine if I wanted one when I was breastfeeding….one night, I just seemed to totally forget that I was breastfeeding, got a little loaded, and pumped and dumped….that freaked me out so I held off for the rest. But I say nothing wrong with enjoying a glass…
ahhhhh….wine. I’m looking forward to that again!
The percent of alcohol in your breast milk is the same as your blood. So as you metabolize the alcohol in your blood it is also cleared out of your breast milk. What I always did and plan to do again is breastfeed or pump just before having a glass or 2 and then waiting a few hours before nursing again.
Any more than a glass or 2 your body would likely need more time to metabolize so you may choose to wait a little longer before feeding…offer pre-pumped milk and wait until you have cleared the alcohol from your system. If you get too uncomfortable and your breasts can’t take the fullness – pump and dump.
I’m a man, so I have no knowledge of the whole drinking-breast feeding thing. However, I would imagine that baby would sleep more soundly if he/she did get any. I think that I have about the same attitude about drinking you do. I will share a drink with friends, when I don’t have to go anywhere. but other then that, I avoid the whole thing. ?there are far too many drunks in my family tree & I have no intention of becoming another one.
Through all the extensive breastfeeding education I’ve done professionally this is what I tell the mums I work with: Drink like you would if you were if you were planning to drink and drive under the legal limit. Which is really about 1-2 glasses of wine per sitting.
Everyones body metabolizes alcohol differently so there can’t be just 1 answer. If you are a healthy person and your liver works, then a couple of glasses over a period of time should not be a big deal at all. Happy wine drinking 😉