http://www.obgyn.net/newsheadlines/womens_health-Breastfeeding-20031218-8.asp

Nursing infants show little effect when moms take antidepressant
Breastfeeding
December 18, 2003

2003 DEC 18 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Most breastfed infants
nurse without showing meaningful effects from their mothers taking
20-40 mg of the antidepressant fluoxetine (Prozac) daily, according
to a study from Yale University.

Postpartum major depression affects about 10% of women. Fluoxetine
belongs to a class of antidepressants known as selective serotonin
reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which are the most commonly prescribed
class of antidepressants for post-partum depression.

The researchers based their findings on 11 breastfed infants before
and after their mothers took fluoxetine for 8 weeks. The infants were
4-12 weeks of age during the study.

"Ten of the 11 infants experienced little or no decline in blood
serotonin concentrations after exposure to fluoxetine through breast
milk," said Neill Epperson, MD, assistant professor of psychiatry and
obstetrics and gynecology at Yale School of Medicine and lead author
of the study, published in the November 2003 edition of Pediatrics.

A decline in blood serotonin levels would have suggested that the
infants received enough of the drug through their mother's breast
milk to affect brain serotonin function. Serotonin is a chemical in
the brain that is believed to influence mood, appetite, sleep, and
other aspects of behavior and cognition.

Epperson said her advice to women who are thinking of breastfeeding
and taking an antidepressant is to weigh a range of factors,
including the severity of the postpartum depression, their response
to the antidepressant, and their commitment to breastfeeding.

She said the infants are being evaluated for any impact of their
exposure to antidepressants on motor and cognitive development. This
article was prepared by Women's Health Weekly editors from staff and
other reports.

©Copyright 2003, Women's Health Weekly via NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net

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