Thank you, Ann.  Is it from you that I heard this on Lactnet?  I will speak to our Safety Officer about this too.  They tell me that in Illinois we have stricter state guidelines than the national ones.  I even had one tech tell me that she tells all breastfeeding moms to stop breastfeeding whether it is recommended or not.  (Big debate about CT scans and MRIs, but policy was finally changed.)  It's really sad that so many in the health professions have no clue that there are any risks with artificial substitutes.
Linda
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: [log in to unmask] 
  To: [log in to unmask] 
  Cc: [log in to unmask] 
  Sent: Tuesday, June 29, 2004 9:01 AM
  Subject: radiation in breast milk


  Linda, my reference was the Safety Officer who covers our hospital.  I went to one of the Nuclear Medicine safety meetings and they told me that the milk does not have to be dumped but instead pump, mark the date and time on the container and store until the half life of the agent has come down to a safe level.
  The radioactive agents work the same in the expressed breast milk as they do in our bodies.  The agents deteriorate over time until they are gone.
  Tom Hale's book is a great reference and he uses the NRC.
  Hope that helps.
  Ann Perry, RN, IBCLC
  Boston, MA

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