In a message dated 2/4/2005 11:59:39 AM Eastern Standard Time,  
[log in to unmask] writes:

He also  notes decreased milk consumption by babies following maternal 
alcohol  ingestion and decreased MER if alcohol ingestion is higher than one  drink. 
 "


Dear Colleagues:
    Hale got this information from the Menella  study, of 12 babies. 11 took 
less milk in the feed after the mother  ingested alcohol, 1 baby took more 
milk. We know that the there is no standard  amount that a baby takes in a feed, 
and that babies self-regulate, so that if  less is ingested in one feed, then 
the baby will make it up in subsequent  feeds.
    A study with a sample of 12 babies in it can  not be taken as 
statistically significant.
    And what are we preventing? A baby won't get drunk  if it nurses after a 
mother has ingested alcohol. Long term effects on a baby  whose nursing mother 
drinks moderately have never been proven; in fact, Ruth  Little (Pediatrics 
2002; 109(5)) was "unable to replicate the earlier motor  skills deficit (which 
was 1 point) associated with lactation alcohol use" in  mothers who ingested 
alcohol (1 drink every day).
    If mothers get the message that they can't bf after  they drink, many 
will opt to give human milk substitutes or quit bf. Many  mothers are ready to 
enjoy some alcohol after an abstemious  pregnancy. What harm are we preventing 
by this caution?
    warmly,    
 
Nikki Lee RN, MS, Mother of 2, IBCLC, CCE
Maternal-Child  Adjunct Faculty Union Institute and University
Film Reviews Editor, Journal  of Human Lactation
Support the WHO Code and the Mother-Friendly Childbirth  Initiative

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