Is Breastmilk Alcohol-Free?

In light of the last season, 4th of July, I started thinking about this topic of alcohol and breastmilk. Up until recently there was never a test for mother's to figure out if their milk was alcohol-free after drinking themselves.

I found a product here that allows a breastfeeding mom to test her breastmilk in just two minutes.

I can't not stress enough that when you are a parent you need to be responsible. Just because your child doesn't know or understand what a drink is, you shouldn't be watching them while intoxicated. In my opinion I need to be safe to drive at any time just in case something were to happen with my children. Even when a babysitter is present in my house.

A couple drinks can effect someone that has been pregnant for 9 months and not touched alcohol period.

This newish product on the market is geared towards testing if your breastmilk is safe for intake:

In just two minutes, Milkscreen quickly and accurately analyzes breast milk for alcohol. Every mother is unique so, naturally, the way our bodies metabolize alcohol is unique, too. Metabolizing alcohol depends on several factors including body weight, type of alcohol consumed, and food intake so milkscreen was created to eliminate those variables. Milkscreen also helps ensure that the alcohol concentrated in Mom's breastmilk is not at a level that may have negative impacts on Baby. Studies have shown infants consuming breastmilk with alcohol concentrations at approximately 30mg/dl, or 0.03%, and higher have exhibited distinctive changes in feeding behavior and sleep. Babies consume less if the milk contains alcohol and they also sleep less and wake more frequently. We've set the milkscreen test to show a color change at 0.02% to help Mom stay within recommended feeding guidelines.

Alcohol could effect your breastmilk if you don't take precautions. The same amount of alcohol that makes it into your bloodstream makes it into your breastmilk. While the amount that's transferred if you drink a glass of wine is relatively small, your baby is tiny and has an immature liver, which means he or she can't process the alcohol as well as you can.

If you do not have a testing kit, I suggest you pump and dump. You should not be nursing if you've drank alcohol.

To read more about this topic go here.