Alcohol is not safe for babies. It causes brain and behavioral delays and interrupts with the chemical reactions of medicine and supplements.
A misconception has been spread around that it's OK to take alcohol-added food because alcohol evaporates away while cooking. If it really fully evaporates away, then why not don't add it in the first place?
As it is, most likely 40% of the alcohol remains in the food. And no amount of alcohol is safe for babies.
"The longer you cook, the more alcohol cooks out, but you have to cook food for about 3 hours to fully erase all traces of alcohol. A study from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Nutrient Data lab confirmed this and added that food baked or simmered in alcohol for 15 minutes still retains 40 percent of the alcohol."
If an alcohol-infused herbal soup has been simmered with a "cover" for 3 hours, chances are that the alcohol did not escape. Similarly, the stir fry fish cooked in cooking wine probably wasn't cooked for 3 hours to fully evaporate the alcohol.
"There is no acceptable amount of alcohol that is considered safe for children. Children metabolize alcohol faster than adults. This means that even a small amount of alcohol can lead to higher blood-alcohol concentrations. This can lead to low blood sugar, coma, and problems regulating body temperature."
Alcohol relaxes the body which boosted my breast milk supply significantly but no I'm not going to feed my baby breastmilk that contains alcohol.
If you drink a (ONE) cup of wine, please wait at least 3 hours before breastfeeding. While most website suggests waiting 2 hours for the body to metabolise the alcohol, metabolism is actually a curve (less alcohol in the blood over time) rather than a fixed cut off (2hrs) so there is alcohol in the breastmilk after 2 hours. If more than 1 glass was drank, it will take longer to metabolise.
"The alcohol level in breast milk is essentially the same as the alcohol level in a mother’s bloodstream."
"One study suggests that the amount of alcohol that a baby will get through breast milk is approximately 5-6% of the weight-adjusted maternal dose"
"A small study explains that babies slept for 25% less time after exposure to small amounts of alcohol in breast milk. And while breastfed babies may become drowsy and fall asleep more quickly after their mother drinks alcohol, they also sleep for a shorter amount of time." And are more irritable.
It is quite common for restaurants and maybe even confinement meal caterers to marinate ingredients in alcohol so be sure to find out from the waiter before ordering. And do request for strictly no alcohol in the marination and cooking of your confinement meals, unless you are not breastfeeding.
There are alternate ways to boost milk supply without risking the baby. Please share your non-alcoholic breastfeeding tips in the comments. It will help us, the breastfeeding mummies a lot!
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