Can I drink beer while breastfeeding?

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:45

During pregnancy, alcoholic beverages are prohibited. But this period is over… The child is growing, and the young mother is increasingly starting to think - is it possible to drink beer while breastfeeding?

There are many legends about the intoxicating drink: beer promotes lactation, contains useful substances and vitamins, and consists of natural ingredients. How true are these statements?

After a successful release from the burden, sometimes you really want to please yourself with a glass of amber beer! How to combine this drink and breastfeeding?

Alcohol while breastfeeding

Breastfeeding imposes obligations and restrictions on the young mother. Sometimes you really want to relax, drink a glass of beer or sip a glass of wine at a common table on a holiday … Is it possible to drink alcohol during lactation? Can I drink beer while breastfeeding?

The intestines of a newborn are susceptible to dietary changes. The microbes necessary for its normal functioning come to the baby with mother's milk. Therefore, alcohol abusestrictly contraindicated in breastfeeding. In the baby's body there are no special enzymes that contribute to the breakdown of alcohol. Even a small dose can damage a child's he alth.

Can I have a glass of beer during lactation? This question causes lively debate among doctors and scientists. They have not yet been able to reach a consensus. Some argue that a glass of beer is acceptable during breastfeeding. Others claim that even non-alcoholic can lead to a delay in the psychomotor development of the child. Is beer okay while breastfeeding?

Consumption of alcoholic beverages

After drinking beer, it enters from the digestive tract first into the stomach, then into the intestines. It is in the intestines, in its upper section, that the absorption of alcohol begins. In the blood, it is found in the time interval from 30 to 90 minutes. It depends on whether the drink was taken with food or on an empty stomach.

The field of how alcohol appears in the blood, it appears in mother's milk. And after the breakdown of ethanol products, blood and milk are purified. The process of removing alcohol from the body depends on the height and weight of the woman, on the strength of the drink.

Milk alcohol content

When drinking alcohol on an empty stomach, alcohol appears in milk in 30-60 minutes. If mommy took alcohol with food, then alcohol will enter the milk after 60-90 minutes.

One serving of alcohol is eliminated from the body within 2-3 hours. This is the case if the weight of a nursing woman is from 50 to55 kg. It should be noted that one serving of wine is 150 ml, and beer - 330 ml. Strong spirits (cognac, whiskey, vodka, brandy) are excreted from the body much more slowly (up to 13 hours).

Should I drink beer while breastfeeding? Doctors advise to minimize alcohol consumption during lactation. Occasional consumption of low-alcohol drinks is allowed. But the dosage that is safe for the baby is unknown to modern science - a lot depends on the individual characteristics of the mother and the child.

Non-Alcoholic Beer While Breastfeeding

There is a belief that non-alcoholic beer cannot harm a baby. It does not contain alcohol, which means that its use is possible during lactation.

It is worth paying attention to the fact that in different varieties, brands of beer, the presence of alcohol from 0.1 to 2% is allowed. Even such an insignificant part of alcohol can cause an upset of the digestive tract, a violation of the child's sleep. Is it worth risking his he alth if, in severe cases, epilepsy or death of a newborn is possible?

In addition, preservatives and additives are used for long-term storage of non-alcoholic beer. So can you drink non-alcoholic beer while breastfeeding?

It is allowed to occasionally drink a glass of beer without ethanol. In this case, it is necessary to pay attention to the quality of the drink. Artificial dyes, preservatives can provoke an allergic reaction in a newborn.

Beer while breastfeeding

Nursing mothersargue that beer affects lactation. As if after a glass of drink, a rush of milk is felt, the child eats more actively and sleeps well. Is this statement true? Can I drink beer while breastfeeding?

The ethyl alcohol found in beer has the ability to lower oxytocin levels. This hormone is responsible for milk production. After drinking beer, the level of oxytocin in the blood decreases, the flow of milk to the breast is blocked. It becomes more difficult for the baby to suck it out. The child does not eat and falls asleep soundly under the influence of alcohol.

A woman feels like her glands are filled with milk. In fact, beer accumulates in the tissues, leading to their swelling. The rush of milk in fact turns out to be only self-hypnosis.

Beer depresses lactation, as well as the baby's nervous system. Until the age of three months, the child's body is vulnerable, it is not able to filter harmful substances. Fusel oils and other impurities can affect the further development of the child.

Pumping will not get rid of the presence of alcohol in milk. Only after its level in the blood decreases will it disappear from milk. Therefore, the question of whether it is impossible or possible to drink beer while breastfeeding remains on the conscience of the young mother.

Benefit or harm?

Incompetent mothers claim that "live" beer contains a lot of vitamins. And it is they who enter the body of the baby. Indeed, unfiltered beer contains useful minerals and trace elements. But the action of fusel oils and ethylalcohol will negate all the beneficial properties of the drink. In beer intended for long storage, useful substances are practically absent. Instead, flavors and preservatives.

In addition, beer during breastfeeding, getting into the body of a child, can cause heart rhythm and breathing disorders, cause intestinal colic.

Constant intake of alcoholic beverages will result in:

• to baby weight loss;
• to disorders in the nervous system;
• to stop development (physical, mental);
• to inflammation of the digestive organs.

Why beer?

Beer, thanks to its bread smell, reminds lactating mothers of group B vitamins. They are necessary during lactation, as they improve metabolism, increase skin and vascular tone, and stimulate the nervous system. Vitamin D, contained in brewer's yeast, strengthens the bones, teeth of the baby and his mother.

Therefore, the smell of intoxicating drink makes you want to drink a glass. In fact, it is better to revise your diet by adding the necessary components to it.

Sour-milk products, whole grain bread, green vegetables, bran, liver, nuts, seeds are sources of B vitamins.

Vitamin D can be found in seafood (mackerel, herring, cod liver and halibut), dairy products, oatmeal, parsley.

Why drink beer while breastfeeding when the vitamins you need can be found in foods? Why put your he alth at riskbaby?

Age

Before you can afford a glass of beer, you should consider that babies under 3 months old have an immature liver. Their nervous system is very sensitive to alcohol. Therefore, until the child is 3 months old, it is strictly forbidden to take any alcoholic beverages.

In the specialized works of foreign authors there is a statement that beer can be breastfed after the child reaches 6 months. A single dose of low-alcohol drinks once a week will not cause harm. The decision to drink beer or wine is up to the nursing mother.

Getting older, the child is increasingly mastering the space: actively crawling, trying on the tongue all kinds of toys and little things. Care and supervision of a fidget require increased attention. Alcohol-blunted mom's reactions can lead to injury to the baby.

Komarovsky about beer

Dr. Evgeny Olegovich assures that there is no ban on beer. And there are pluses and minuses of this drink.

Pros:

• natural ingredients (hops, barley, brewer's yeast);
• presence of B vitamins.

Cons:

presence of alcohol, preservatives and other harmful substances

Dr. Komarovsky confirms that the increase in lactation after drinking beer is a myth. A graduated drink has no effect on milk production.

A glass of beer won't be devastatingfor the child's body. But experimenting during lactation is not worth it. Therefore, Dr. Komarovsky offers such an optimal option: if you really want beer, you can use non-alcoholic. Not canned, which has a lot of preservatives, but bottled. But even in this case, you should limit yourself to a single dose.

Alcohol Prohibitions

If a nursing woman decides to allow herself a few glasses of this drink, then you need to remember the following rules.

• Do not feed a baby while intoxicated.
• After drinking alcohol, do not take the baby to bed with you.
• Do not drink alcohol on an empty stomach.
• Take into account your weight (overweight women excrete decay products faster).

You should know that ethyl alcohol changes the taste of milk. Therefore, the baby may refuse to feed. In addition, milk with alcohol contains a minimum of useful substances. This means that the child will not receive the necessary trace elements and vitamins.

If you can't, but really want to

If it is impossible to give up alcohol during the holiday or you want to relax before going to bed, then one serving of beer, wine (volume - up to a glass) is allowed.

Can I drink beer while breastfeeding? Yes, but subject to certain conditions.

• Express milk to feed the baby for several times. Expressed milk, without losing its beneficial properties, is stored in the refrigerator for a day, in the freezer for a month.
• Feed the babyjust before drinking alcohol.
• Don't drink beer or wine on an empty stomach.
• Do not breastfeed your baby after drinking alcohol for 12 to 24 hours (if drinking multiple drinks) or 3 to 6 hours (if drinking a glass of beer).

A small dose of alcohol will not harm the baby and will please his mother. Another thing is if beer is consumed daily. Regular exposure to alcohol on the child's body causes lethargy, apathy, increased gas formation, and slows down the development of gross motor skills.

Can I drink non-alcoholic beer while breastfeeding? Non-alcoholic and high-quality, it will not harm the child. But even in this case, you should not abuse it.

He alth and development of the crumbs depend on the diet of the mother, the saturation of her milk with the necessary proteins, trace elements, vitamins. A single dose of the amber drink is compatible with breastfeeding. But if it is possible to refrain from using it, it is better to refuse it and keep the baby he althy.