Hi Christine,
I am sorry I don't have an answer to your question - it just irks me to read
about a mom that is ready to put her baby on formula so she herself can
continue to lead a "healthy lifestyle."  Isn't there something really skewed
in the logic here.  If indeed there is a problem with toxens in her milk,
couldn't she find a middle ground in which both she and baby can live a
healthy lifestyle and not just the mother?!
Looking forward to seeing an real answer to your question,
Chayn Fogelman IBCLC in Israel

On Mon, Feb 23, 2009 at 9:24 PM, Christine Lichte <[log in to unmask]>wrote:

> A mom called me with concerns about continuing to breastfeed while loosing
> weight.  Her baby is 3 months old and exclusively breastfed.  She wants to
> nurse at least 6 months.  She has just started dieting end exercising and
> loosing about 5 lbs per week. She is not on any extreme diet. She has just
> changed to eating healthy foods like chicken, fruits, veggies, and healthy
> grains-she eats 6 meals per day.  She is also exercising.  She has read
> that
> you should only loose up to 1.5 lbs per week otherwise you will have
> harmful
> toxins in your milk.  Now she is thinking seriously about switching to
> formula.
>
> I understand the recommendations about loosing weight slowly, but is it
> really
> harmful to continue breastfeeding if you are loosing weight quickly?  I
> told this
> mother that formula has health risks also.  She does not want to stop
> exercising.  It is not like she is trying out some new fad diet.  She has
> just
> switched to a healthy lifestyle.  If she continues to breastfeed and stops
> loosing weight (once she reaches her target weight) and continues to lead a
> healthy lifestyle would the effects of the toxins in her milk be cancelled
> out?  I
> mean, is it okay for baby to be temporarily exposed to harmful toxins since
> those toxins will eventually leave?   I want to convince her that she is
> still
> doing the best thing for her baby by continuing to breastfeed, but I want
> to
> get the facts first.  Thanks.
>
> Christine Lichte, IBCLC
>
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