Feeding Safety
A friend of mine who is breastfeeding recently had a problem. Her baby was crying for no discernible reason. She couldn’t figure it out – she wondered if it had something to do with the cold she had, but she was taking plenty of cold medicine to stop her symptoms, and the baby didn’t seem affected.
Then she used her breast pump and found out that she was only producing about half as much milk.
Mothers beware: if you are using cold medications, they tend to suppress symptoms by drying out your mucosal membranes, which is why your nose doesn’t run. However, that includes your mammary glands. Your output of milk may be severely lessened by various over-the-counter medications, especially those that alleviate cold symptoms.
My friend was horrified that she had been ’starving’ her baby for two days. I laughed and assured her that she hadn’t been, just putting her baby on an impromptu diet – but it would be a wise decision to stop the cold medication immediately. She did, and milk production returned to normal within 24 hours.
If you have a cold and want to take medication, please consult your doctor as to any unexpected consequences it might have on nursing.
