Has anyone noticed a bad reaction to alcohol in baby when breastfeeding? I've been told, even by the Lactation nurses, that a glass of wine is okay while BFing. The past 2 weekends, I gave it a go and had one glass of wine (2 separate nights). DH usually stays up with the baby late night while I catch a couple hours of sleep, but he said BOTH nights she was awfully hard to get to sleep! I did experience it this past weekend. While I was super drowsy and sleepy from my one glass of wine, K would not sleep for any good amount of time and was super fussy ALL NIGHT! It was like she was MORE awake! I chalked it up to her growth spurt, but DH thinks she might not be able to tolerate alcohol (since we both have relatives that are allergic to alcohol).
Ah! I'll be so sad if I can't have any wine as long as I BF!
Did anyone experience anything like this? I'm going to try one more night next weekend and see if a glass of wine = brutal night of sleep. If so, I guess I will hold off entirely. 
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I haven't noticed anything. What's the timing like with the wine and BF? I've tried to have it immediately after feeding her if I'm going to have something. I don't always do it perfectly but I've heard good to drive, good to feed. Sorry K is having a hard time!
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I haven't really had more than a few sips of anything (mainly because my tolerance is nonexistent now!) but I've heard that the best time to have a drink with the least effect on baby is while you're breastfeeding! When I first started drinking coffee again I'd do it while I was feeding her.
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I never had any problem with a glass of wine or so while I was nursing X. I mean, aside from the disapproval of some who thought it was as bad as drinking while pregnant. (And to that, I give a big ol' eye roll.)
If your body has time to process the alcohol so that it's not present in the milk, I'm not sure how it could create a problem, even if LO is allergic. But then, I'm unsure on how some of that stuff works. It could be worth asking an LC.
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Awww. I haven't personally experienced a bad reaction with A after having a glass of wine. But it could be she is extra sensitive to it. You could always pump and dump if you really want to have a glass or have one when you know it will have passed thru your system before you nurse her again.
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A friend of mine has the asian glow, and when his wife was breastfeeding their child after having a single beer... their daughter's face turned red!
So I guess that a single drink can have an impact... I had no idea.
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both charlie and olive were fine after a glass of wine. if i couldn't drink, i'd have weaned olive already.
but she is 19 months old and still nursing!i hope your lo isn't allergic! that would suck!
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Baby A hasn't had a bad reaction. I like to have a glass after she goes to bed for the night.
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I feel that my son had the same reaction yours did. I always felt that his sleep was worse when I drank (a little or more). It may have just been the extra sugars (since wine becomes sugars). I don't know. I just decided that it was a battle I was willing to do for a drink every now and again.
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Oh no! LO hasn't had a reaction at all, thank goodness, as this momma would have cried without being able to enjoy a glass of wine!
What's the time gap between when you finish your drink and when she nurses next? Do you pump at all? If so, could you give K a bottle of pumped milk at her next feed, giving you additional time to get the alcohol out of your system? Not sure if that would work if there's an allergy to alcohol, but may be worth a shot!
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@birdofafeather: @red_seattle: I've heard both of these guidelines too. I think I had the wine pretty soon after last feeding - not too close to the next feeding. But I was drinking a sip here and there, so it got spaced out.
@mrbee: That's the theory we thought would happen! I don't think she turned red at all.
@Mrs. Bee:
@brownie: Ok, it makes me feel a little better knowing this could be somewhat normal. Will give it another try next weekend and see. The battle for me last weekend was staying awake when she was! Tolerance has gone down a lot...
@Ree723: Good idea! I will do that if next weekend's experiment doesn't pan out!
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I cant remember where I read it but it said that alcohol can have the opposite affect on BF babies. So instead of making them sleepy like us, it makes them more awake.
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@ALV91711: Gah! I think that's what I have! I wonder if coffee would make her sleepy then? lol!
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DD didn't get sleepy when I drank wine, it made her have a worse night. I wasn't able to drink at all while nursing, well at least not before her bedtime!
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Can you maybe try drinking a glass of wine WHILE nursing? Our pedi told us that was actually the best as far as timing, since the alcohol wouldn't even really hit the breastmilk until after LO was done, and then there was a chunk of time til the next time he ate. I hope she's not allergic!
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* Update: I had wine twice last weekend with no consistent fussiness! I'm hoping it's all okay to imbibe on occasion!
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@shopaholic: that's good news! I was just thinking of this post bc I had a glass of wine on Tuesday night and A didn't sleep so well, but tonight he was totally fine and slept 6 hours (no wine). I'm gonna have to experiment!
but she is 19 months old and still nursing!
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