My name is Alicia Hanson and I am a nursing student from the University of North Dakota. I have wondered as well as my colleagues about the effects of breast milk in infants when the mother consumes alcohol. When researching this topic, I found contradictory information on the effects of alcohol in the breast milk. Most of the information I found was based upon research in the 1990’s. I am interested in information on occasional consumption of alcohol by the mother. “Occasional” consumption of alcohol would be defined as one or two alcoholic beverages in one setting per week, but not habitual consumption. This would be in a time of a wedding, anniversary, birthday, or other setting that involved alcohol consumption.
            According to Lawrence and Lawrence (1999), alcohol is one of the most rapidly absorbed compounds. Lactators tend to peak at lower levels and clear the alcohol more quickly. Alcohol peak levels in milk is 30 to 60 minutes and 60 to 90 minutes when taken with food. Mohrbacher and Stock (1997) state that “…alcohol is a depressant and if consumed in large amounts can slow the letdown.” Although we assume that it is not healthy and can be harmful to the infant if they drink the breast milk that contains alcohol, neither source directly states the effects of alcohol on the infant. 
            Mennella (2001) concluded that human infants consumed approximately 20% less breast milk during the immediate hours after their mothers’ consumption of an acute dose of alcohol. In this study, Mennella monitored the feeding behaviors of infants for 4 hours immediately after exposure to alcohol in mothers’ milk compared to the feeding behaviors of the same infant when the mother did not consume alcohol. The alcohol amount that the mother consumed was 0.3g/kg dose of alcohol in orange juice compared to orange juice alone on a different day (Mennella, 2001). This topic can be quite controversial and can vary from culture to culture.
            If this type of situation occurs in your practice, what information do you give to your patients when they indicate a desire to continue having an “occasional” drink while breastfeeding? With those patients that do consume, have you seen any effects in the infant and if so, what effects have you seen?
 
Thank you,
Alicia Hanson, University of North Dakota
 
 
 
Lawrence, R.A. and Lawrence, R.M. (1999). A Guide for the medical Professional in
            Breastfeeding, 5th ed. Mosby, Inc.: St. Louis, MO.
 
Mennella, J.A. (2001). Regulation of milk intake after exposure to alcohol in mother’s
            milk. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 25(4): 590-593.
 
Mohrbacher, N. and Stock, J. (1997). The Breastfeeding Answer Book, revised ed. La
            Leche League, International: Schaumburg, IL.

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