For those of you who were interested in what Lactnetters think about the young mother who had a history of pot use and wanted to breastfeed: There were 19 people, male and female, who responded, some of them several times, either to the list or to me by email. They were from at least five countries on three continents, so a variety of cultures/backgrounds was represented. Almost everyone thought the woman should continue to breastfeed, although many said she should be encourged to stop or to cut back on her use. A few qualified their approval by saying she should be tested regularly or should be followed up by CPS, and there were a couple of suggestions that she consider entering a drug rehab program. (One poster thought this would be counterproductive, and another said it would be useless if the girl didn't want to go.) One respondent thought the girl was probably depressed and would benefit greatly from some nurturing and social support. Most people emphasized the value of breastfeeding for promoting bonding for this girl even more than the physical benefits to the baby. One poster said she would warn the mother of possible harm to the baby and would not encourage her to breastfeed. No one said they would simply tell the mother she should not consider nursing her child, and nobody expressed the opinion that this was a simple situation with a clear-cut, easy, yes-or-no answer. A few women said they themselves or friends and family members had smoked pot while nursing with no noticeable effects on the children. One poster from another country where pot use is not illegal was appalled that there would be even the possiblilty of removing a child from its mother's custody for pot use alone. It was pointed out by several people that there is little scientific evidence that pot is harmful to nurslings, but one poster did find a couple of articles related to pot use during pregnancy. (I ran a lit search on Medline and Cinahl for the past five years, using every combination of terms I could think of, and didn't find anything definitive on marijuana use during lactation. Actually, I didn't find much at all.) Some posters remarked on the hypocricy of condemning this girl for pot use, when women who use tobacco and alcohol aren't threatened with loss of their children, even though documented evidence of harm is much greater for these drugs. There were concerns about possible concurrent use of other, more dangerous drugs, as well as contamination of the pot by pesticides or by other street drugs, and about the girl's ability to care for the baby properly if she is a heavy user. On the other hand, of course, people expressed concern about the potential damage done by formula, which may be contaminated as well as deficient. One poster gave an anecdotal report of a client she had worked with, whose failure-to-thrive baby didn't gain until the mother stopped her daily pot use. Thanks to all of you who took time to respond. I found the discussion enlightening, stimulating, and quite helpful in focusing my thoughts about the situation. It was also an interesting indication of how culture, personal experience, educational and occupational backgrounds influence our thoughts about ethical and moral matters. It's apparent that all of us, no matter what we think about this particular case, consider the contact we have with nursing mothers to be both a privilege and a great responsibility. The girl did go home breastfeeding, and when my colleague made our routine three-day callback, the grandmother said the baby was feeding well at breast. (She also mentioned that the baby's face was "orange, like he's suntanned," so Yvonne advised her to call the pediatrician. Grandma said she had told the baby's mother the same thing, but she hadn't followed through yet....) Judy Dunlap, RNC, BA, IBCLC