# Alcohol in Breastmilk- When to pump and dump?



## LadyCatherine185 (Aug 12, 2008)

My DH's work is hosting a Christmas part in a few weeks, and this is going to be our first outing without DS! Anyway, my question is, if I wanted to have a few glasses of wine at the party, how long does it take for the alcohol to get into my milk? We will probably be at the party from 7-11 pm. Should I just pump and dump when I get home from the party? Or do I need to pump and dump all night afterwards? Anyone have any advice/experience on this?


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## Ruthla (Jun 2, 2004)

http://www.kellymom.com/health/lifestyle/alcohol.html

Basically, if you're sober enough to drive, no need to pump and dump. If you get drunk and then don't pump, your breastmilk will return to non-drinking levels when your blood does. The only time you need to pump and dump is if you get totally drunk, and then want to pump to maintain supply before your blood (and milk )alcohol content return to normal.


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## merry-mary (Aug 9, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Ruthla* 
http://www.kellymom.com/health/lifestyle/alcohol.html

Basically, if you're sober enough to drive, no need to pump and dump. If you get drunk and then don't pump, your breastmilk will return to non-drinking levels when your blood does. The only time you need to pump and dump is if you get totally drunk, and then want to pump to maintain supply before your blood (and milk )alcohol content return to normal.

Exactly.

Blood alcohol content = alcohol content in breastmilk.

You may want to drink more water than you normally would ... I find that when I'm nursing, even one beer or one glass of wine makes me incredibly thirsty!

Have fun!


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## Baby_Cakes (Jan 14, 2008)

Ditto what everyone else said - especially the water. I find I can't even finish a glass of wine or a whole beer without wanting water in between to help with thirst!

If you feel tipsy when you get home, you could pump and dump if it makes you personally feel better, but make sure you have expressed milk already on hand for that feeding. From the small amount of research I've done online, it really wouldn't be necessary as the effects of that tiny amount of alcohol in the bm wouldn't be detrimental to your LO. The real problem comes from continuous drinking - i.e. alcoholism, drinking every day, being drunk every day and bf'ing.

Drinking while bf'ing also makes me so tired. I swear, I could fall asleep after half a beer these days.


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## Kappa (Oct 15, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *merry-mary* 
Exactly.

*Blood alcohol content = alcohol content in breastmilk.*
You may want to drink more water than you normally would ... I find that when I'm nursing, even one beer or one glass of wine makes me incredibly thirsty!

Have fun!

I keep this in mind, unless you are planning on bingeing you should be alright to bf when you get home. The alcohol content of your milk will be similar to apple cider. You can pump and save the milk and use it later if you want, or just throw it out if you don't want any alcohol at all getting to your baby.


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## PatioGardener (Aug 11, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Kappa* 
I keep this in mind, unless you are planning on bingeing you should be alright to bf when you get home. *The alcohol content of your milk will be similar to apple cider.* You can pump and save the milk and use it later if you want, or just throw it out if you don't want any alcohol at all getting to your baby.

Non-alcoholic apple cider! Even if you are too drunk to drive (blood alcohol of 0.08 in Canada) your milk will be much less than a non-alcoholic beer.

The only time I would suggest pumping is if you are too tipsy to safely hold your baby while you breastfeed, so you get someone else to feed a bottle of pumped milk and you pump to keep up your supply.


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## LadyCatherine185 (Aug 12, 2008)

Thanks Mamas! This is great! Can't wait for our date night!!


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