I would like to echo the reluctance to advise  women to pump and dump before
we have exhausted the information resources available to us. In addition to
imposing a hardly- ever- necessary burden on a lactating woman, this advice
reinforces the widely held myth that breastmilk is somehow magically
transformed into a harmful substance as soon as a woman swallows a pill.

Despite living in one of the premier areas of the country for supposedly
state-of-the art medical care, I hear horror stories about bad advice re:
lactation and medicine all the time.  If I hear one more story about a woman
who was told to wean for a two week course of antibiotics or a short course
of steroids(not to mention the women who are told to "pump and dump"
following local anesthesia for dental work) I am going to scream.

At the very least, we need to avail ourselves of the *good* information
sources. Does some enterprising Lactnut feel up to compiling a short
bibliography  of such and posting it for those of us with less medical
background?

In addition, a nodding aquaintance with  the basic terminology of the
pharmacology of drugs and breastmilk,  such as provided by Dr. Hale, is
invaluable.  Just the basics---protein  binding, molecular weight, half-life
, oral bioavailability, etc. has made me much more confident that I am
understanding the recommendations that I encounter.

Karen Kavesh in Philadelphia
(Who was also told to wean before a root canal)

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