I too wonder about various nipple creams that mothers find to use.
My biggest concern is what the infant is being exposed to, rather than the
mother--figuring ingestion is often more harmful than topical absorption,
especially given newborn metabolism vs mature adult, etc.
The "would you put it on your toast" test doesn't really do it for me in
terms of infant ingestion. For example, I'd put peanut butter on my toast,
but certainly recommend against parents giving their newborn peanut butter.
The Environmental Working Group is a great website (thanks! I didn't know it
existed), and I'll refer mothers to it for safety of topical use for the
mother's sake.  But it seems to be about "Skin Deep" absorption issues, not
ingestion of those creams.
Still wondering and hoping for some way to know more--
Susan Lawrence, RN, IBCLC, LLLL

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