Attachment Parenting :: Articles :: What do I need to know about Drugs and Medications while Nursing / Breastfeeding?

Because anything which a nursing mother ingests is likely to go to her baby through her milk, it is very important, when breastfeeding, to ensure that whatever a mother takes in is also safe for baby. This is one excellent reason to read the warning material included in any prescription or over-the-counter medicine you might be taking.

One of the very best resources for the nursing mother is Dr. Hale's book, "Medications and Mothers' Milk" (see below). This book includes information about not only prescription and over the counter drugs, but also about other substances. There's also quite a bit of information you can read at Amazon.com's "inside the book" for this book too, so even if you aren't going to buy it, you might find exploring its contents helpful while you're online.

Dr. Hale recently published another book, "Clinical Therapy in Breastfeeding Patients", which allows one to look up particular symptoms or illnesses, and determine the safest courses of treatment for the breastfeeding mother and infant. Again, we recommend that you go and check out what people have to say about this at Amazon.com and BN.com and also explore the material from the book available online.

Another area of serious concern is that of smoking and breastfeeding. Research indicates that smoking while breastfeeding can cause serious harm to the baby, beyond that already recognized harm caused by second-hand smoke.

Additional Resources:

• Smoking while Breastfeeding: What are the Risks?
• Medications and Mothers' Milk", by Dr. Thomas W. Hale
• "Clinical Therapy in Breastfeeding Patients", by Dr. Thomas W. Hale