Seems to me her docs are probably worried about this converting to an anaphylactic reaction at some point. If you do a literature search you can see that this is incredibly rare, only a couple of cases have been reported of suspected anaphylaxis due to the hormones of breastfeeding and they occured early on in the breastfeeding process. The mom in question should be asked whether she can live with her hives and if the answer is yes, then she should just be informed of the incredibly remote risk of this becoming worse, informed about the signs and sypmptoms of anaphylaxis and what to do about them, epi pen, benadryl and an immediate trip to the ER and then she should be allowed to make the decision herself....Most women in this scenario, I think, would opt to continue breastfeeding assuming the hives themselves are not too distressing. And I agree with the posts that pointed to allergic and immune mediated responses being multifactorial and the need to reduce any other things that might be helping to trigger this response...She needs to see a really good breastfeeding friendly allergist!!! 
Kathy Lilleskov RN IBCLC

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