Just a quick reminder that the latest edition of the drug and lactation guide Medications and Mothers’ Milk is available starting today! According to the publisher:
Some of the new features added to Medications and Mothers’ Milk 2008, thirteenth edition include:
- More than 70 new drugs.
- Rigorous updates to hundreds of drugs and tables.
- Updated tables on radiocontrast agents.
- Updated tables on cold and cough remedies.
Buy Medications and Mothers’ Milk now!

Yesterday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning against the use of Mommy’s Bliss Nipple Cream, marketed by MOM Enterprises, Inc. to nursing mothers for treatment of cracked and sore nipples. The packaging specifically states that it is not necessary to remove the cream before nursing, but two ingredients in the cream may be harmful to nursing infants. The FDA describes the dangers of chlorphenesin and phenoxyethanol:
Chlorphenesin relaxes skeletal muscle and can depress the central nervous system and cause respiratory depression (slow or shallow breathing) in infants. Phenoxyethanol is a preservative that is primarily used in cosmetics and …read more

In honor of Mental Health Month, the Health and Wellness Channel focuses on mental health topics today. The good news is that breastfeeding protects maternal mental health. According to a study by Kathleen Kendall-Tackett in the International Breastfeeding Journal:
Breastfeeding has been shown to reduce stress and protect maternal mood. Breastfeeding also reduces stress of babies of depressed mothers and protects them from the harmful effects of maternal depression. Treatment approaches that are anti-inflammatory have efficacy in treating depression. These include EPA and DHA, exercise, cognitive therapy, herbal anti-depressants such as St. John’s wort, and standard antidepressants.
Unfortunately, many breastfeeding mothers will …read more

Welcome to the April Carnival of Breastfeeding, “Thrush and Mastitis and Blebs, oh my!” This month several contributors share their experiences with different breastfeeding challenges and offer links and resources for overcoming those challenges. First I will talk about using gentian violet or grapefruit seed extract as alternative remedies for thrush, but make sure to read on for links to the other contributions at the end!
Oversupply
When my first daughter was born, I struggled with oversupply. In theory oversupply sounds great because it eliminates any worry about having enough milk for the baby. In reality, it can cause a lot of …read more

This question came up recently when one of my friends had an emergency appendectomy. Personally I have used this question as a way to weed out (bad) doctors — unless they give me the correct answer or say “I don’t know, but I’ll find out for you,” they’re history. For the expert answer to whether general anesthesia affects breastfeeding, watch this 24-second video clip.
VideoJug: Does general anesthesia affect breastfeeding?

Hi there. Kendra here from Diabetes Notes, a fellow blogger at the science and health channel. Being a nurse, I can’t tell you how many times I have heard the words, “I know I can’t breastfeed after I have the baby, I’m a diabetic.” And I can’t count how many times I have said, “the heck you can’t.” There are proven benefits to both the baby and the diabetic mommy who breastfeed.
What are they you ask? Let me give you a few…
1. Babies that are breastfed have a reduced risk for developing diabetes later on in life.
2. Prolonging the introduction …read more

The FDA has issued a warning about the use of codeine by nursing mothers. The agency notes that breastfeeding mothers have used codeine safely for many years, and codeine is generally considered the safest narcotic drug for pain relief after a mother gives birth. However, infants are at risk of morphine overdose if their mothers happen to be “ultra-rapid metabolizers” of codeine. Certain women have a genetic trait that results in the ultra-rapid metabolization of codeine and thus higher-than-normal levels of morphine in the mothers’ systems. According to WebMD:
Ultra-fast codeine metabolism occurs in people who have a mutation in the …read more

Q: I plan to adopt a baby and have read about using the drug domperidone to induce lactation. There’s a lot of conflicting information on the web though, and I even read that the FDA has warned against breastfeeding mothers using the drug. What can you tell me about that warning?
A: Domperidone is an anti-nausea medication that also happens to increase serum prolactin in women. It’s used in combination with frequent nursing or pumping to induce lactation or increase milk supply.
Domperidone is readily available outside the United States but is not available through most pharmacies in the U.S. It’s …read more

Today’s tip on the advantages of breastfeeding came from a reader who noticed this piece in the Wall Street Journal on pain management for children receiving shots. Options for pain relief include sugar water, the topical numbing cream EMLA, anesthetic sprays, a relaxed attitude in the parent, and holding of the infant. The journalist also suggests:
One simple–and free–option is to breastfeed an infant while the shot is administered, a technique advocated by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
On a friend’s advice, Jennifer Astman of Santa Monica, Calif., decided to nurse her 2-month-old son while he was given three vaccinations earlier this year. …read more

First let me reassure mothers that it is entirely possible and normal to breastfeed once a baby has teeth. Keep in mind that the leading health organizations recommend breastfeeding for one to two years minimum–a time span that surely involves teething. Many babies never bite (they know not to bite the breast that feeds them!) and if they do they rarely break the skin and they quickly learn not to bite. A firm but gentle “no biting” and temporary removal from the breast is generally all that’s necessary. The mother’s natural reaction of startling and yelping may also be enough, …read more