There are some aspects of the case I'd not known about, and there is this:
there is little or no medical research on drinking and breastfeeding because
...“[r]esearchers cannot ethically conduct controlled research on intoxicated women who breast-feed.” Instead, experts rely on anecdotal evidence to advise against breastfeeding after drinking or drinking to the point of intoxication, but it’s not clear what the risks really are.
DJR is quoting Dr. Amy Tuteur, a retired obstetrician and gynecologist, and the AP writer James MacPherson.
I find them both hard to believe. They don't have to do controlled research by getting a woman drunk and then having her breastfeed her child. The place to at least start would be to have her drink a glass or two of alcohol and then pump and test the breastmilk to see how much transfers through to the milk.
In fact, I find it impossible to believe such research has not already been done, and it turns out I am right. I found this out because I had a pretty good idea of just who might have already done such research, so I googled his name and found it here. It is unfortunate that neither MacPherson nor the retired doctor are apparently aware of the wonderful work of Thomas W. Hale, R.Ph. Ph.D., member of the LLLI Health Advisory Council, and author of a book every breastfeeding mother and every medical person who has anything to do with breastfeeding mothers should have- Medications and Mothers' Milk. Here's a quote from the 12th edition:
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Significant amounts of alcohol are secreted into breastmilk although it is not considered harmful to the infant if the amount and duration are limited. The absolute amount of alcohol transferred into milk is generally low. Beer, but not ethanol, has been reported in a number of studies to stimulate prolactin levels and breastmilk production (1, 2, 3). Thus it is presumed that the polysaccharide from barley may be the prolactin-stimulating component of beer (4). Non-alcoholic beer is equally effective.
In a study of twelve breastfeeding mothers who ingested 0.3 g/kg of ethanol in orange juice (equivalent to 1 can of beer for the average-sized woman), the mean maximum concentration of ethanol in milk was 320 mg/L (5). This report suggests a 23% reduction (156 to 120 mL) in breastmilk production following ingestion of beer and an increase in milk odor as a function of ethanol content.
Excess levels may lead to drowsiness, deep sleep, weakness, and decreased linear growth in the infant. Maternal blood alcohol levels must attain 300 mg/dl before significant side effects are reported in the infant. Reduction of letdown is apparently dose-dependent and requires alcohol consumption of 1.5 to 1.9 gm/kg body weight (6). Other studies have suggested psychomotor delay in infants of moderate drinkers (2+ drinks daily). Avoid breastfeeding during and for 2 - 3 hours after drinking alcohol.
In an interesting study of the effect of alcohol on milk ingestion by infants, the rate of milk consumption by infants during the 4 hours immediately after exposure to alcohol (0.3 g/kg) in 12 mothers was significantly less (7). Compensatory increases in intake were then observed during the 8 - 16 hours after exposure when mothers refrained from drinking.
Adult metabolism of alcohol is approximately 1 ounce in 3 hours, so mothers who ingest alcohol in moderate amounts can generally return to breastfeeding as soon as they feel neurologically normal. Chronic or heavy consumers of alcohol should not breastfeed.
It's debatable whether or not the police officers who arrested that mother are correct (significantly, they never tested her blood alcohol levels, and she had been hit by her boyfriend, so it's questionable whether she acted funny because she'd been punched or because she was drunk), but it's not true that 'experts' rely on anecdotal evidence. Pin It
