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How to advise women on the safe use of medicines while breastfeeding

This article was published in the Pharmaceutical Journal June 2021

https://pharmaceutical-journal.com/article/ld/how-to-advise-women-on-the-safe-use-of-medicines-while-breastfeeding

but I feel is too important not to be readily available for professionals. It should be part of the what mothers want professionals to know about breastfeeding series. So I have adapted it slightly to be in a pdf format so it can be used more easily

How to advise women on the safe use of medicines while breastfeeding article

If you use this information please do consider buying Breastfeeding and Medication

Skin allergy tests and breastfeeding

Mothers have been reporting that they have been advised to interrupt breastfeeding or even stop altogether in order to have skin and patch allergy testing. This doesn’t seem based on evidence but possibly without national guidelines.

The allergens do not pass into the blood stream let alone breastmilk so there is no reason to interrupt breastfeeding.

Medication

Should you react severely to an allergen test and require administration of an antihistamine, an adrenaline injection (e.g. EpiPen)  or a steroid that does not stop you breastfeeding as normal

Adrenaline/epinephrine injection e/g/ EpiPen ™. Ingredient present in milk but unlikely to be harmful as poor oral bioavailability . Half life 2 minutes so all gone from the body in 10 minutes.

Antihistamine – https://www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/antihistamines/

Prednisolone – https://www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/prednisolone/

Skin allergy tests and breastfeeding

Breastfeeding and Chronic Medical Conditions, Wendy Jones

What do mothers want healthcare professionals to know about nipple/ breast pain during lactation?

I asked for feedback on this question 12 months ago about pain during breastfeeding and finally time to write it up. Reading it again makes me sad. The pain of breastfeeding for some people cannot be ignored. I hope that this facilitates a discussion amongst professionals who see breastfeeding women. It’s important for mothers, for partners and for babies and time we stopped ignoring it.

This is the data that I extracted

what do mothers want healthcare professionals to know about breast and nipple pain in lactation

Some links that may help everyone

What do mothers want professionals to know about Breastfeeding and Contraception?

A few weeks ago I asked on my facebook page for experience of using contraception whilst breastfeeding using a googledoc survey. I had just under 80 responses in 24 hours and here I have tried to analyse the results. Five mothers reported that their supply was affected by the use of contraception. Many more were unhappy with the information that was given before prescription of the contraceptive. Food for thought

Please see https://www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/contraception/ for information on the contraceptives and https://www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/ehc/ on emergency hormonal contraception which I wrote for BfN.

Contraception and breastfeeding. What mothers want doctors to know analysis

The truth about Breastfeeding and Medication

A podcast recorded with Boobingit and pharmacist Sarah Robinson

https://boobingit.com/the-truth-about-breastfeeding-medication-with-sarah-robinson-and-dr-wendy-jones

Migraine treatment and Breastfeeding

Another chapter from my book Breastfeeding and Chronic Medical Conditions today on the treatment of migraines which affect so many people. Migraines are miserable, when you have to continue to deal with a baby or toddler or older child and cant go and sleep in darkened room they can break the best. This factsheet goes through some of the treatments for breastfeeding including sumatriptan. Hope it helps. Maybe time to buy the very reasonably priced book available from Amazon ?

Treatment of migraines and breastfeeding factsheet

Breastfeeding and Chronic Medical Conditions, Wendy Jones

Donating breastmilk and taking medication

I am very proud to support all the breastmilk banks in the UK who provide milk to mothers of neonates. I was intensely grateful just over a year ago when my youngest grand daughter was born early, weighing just 3 and a half pounds. My daughter had fed 2 other children and like me is passionate about exclusive breastfeeding. However, she was exhausted trying to pump and stimulate her supply for our little wee scrap to keep her blood sugars up. She was given the gift of a small volume of donated breastmilk which took the pressure off for a few hours to allow her to sleep. Of course this was all during the height of the pandemic and she was seperated from her husband and children. She described it this way: ” It was if the donor mums were holding both of us safe, they were feeding my baby for just a few hours whilst I regained my strength. I can never thank those mums enough for that relatively small amount of milk (24ml), which was worth so, so much to me. By the following morning I had enough milk to provide the supplements through the NG tube

Milk from donating mothers has to be free of medication which might affect the health of the tiny, vulnerable pre-term. I have drawn up this list but it seems to change regularly . Thank you to every mum who makes the precious donation of breastmilk

https://ukamb.org/medication-and-donating-breastmilk-2/

Fluoxetine and Breastfeeding

In the final of the sheets on antidepressant / anti anxiety SSRIs is fluoxetine. It is often looked on as the least compatible with breastfeeding because of its long half life and greater passage into milk. However, it is often used in pregnancy because there are a significant number of studies https://www.medicinesinpregnancy.org/Medicine–pregnancy/Fluoxetine/.

What is perhaps less well known is that if a mother has taken it throughout pregnancy the baby MAY be very drowsy in the first few days after delivery as it withdraws from the higher levels achieved through placental transfer.

My recommendation for any mother taking fluoxetine during pregnancy and wishing to breastfeed is to learn hand expression in preparation

https://www.unicef.org.uk/babyfriendly/baby-friendly-resources/breastfeeding-resources/hand-expression-video/

and to maybe discuss antenatal expression of colostrum with the midwife, just in case the baby is sleepy and taking time to latch effectively. Colostrum can raise blood sugars in very small amounts. (This is really helpful info for the red flags of low sugar and in my opinion explains everything well https://www.guysandstthomas.nhs.uk/resources/patient-information/maternity/protecting-your-baby-from-low-blood-glucose.pdf)

So you can breastfeed after delivery if you have taken fluoxetine but you may need a little help and support. Seek this antenatally so you are well prepared.

I would also add that if fluoxetine has been the SSRI that you have used and found effective in the past, then that would make it the first choice in breastfeeding. Some babies are colicky, some are drowsy, some vomit, some have loose diarrhoea – but we cant tell in advance.

I remember the very first study I looked at on fluoxetine some 25 or more years ago that the mother and the baby’s paediatrician thought the baby hadnt changed behaviour when exposed to fluoxetine via his mother’s breastmilk. The baby’s father (also a paediatrician) perceived it as more irritable and on that anecdotal basis back then it was said that fluoxetine made babies irritable. I cant find the report any more but if we had been able to see into the family unit we may have seen a dad trying to help his partner whilst working and feeling stressed himself. Who knows?

I hope this information is useful to anyone taking fluoxetine whilst breastfeeding

Fluoxetine and breastfeeding factsheet

The Importance of Dads and Grandmas to the Breastfeeding Mother, Wendy Jones
Breastfeeding and Chronic Medical Conditions, Wendy Jones

Progesterone Pessaries and Breastfeeding

A question which is coming up very frequently just now is the use of cyclogest pessaries in pregnacy for mums who are still,breastfeeding. So to save me keep typing ( and to help you, of course) here is the information.

Progesterone pessaries and breastfeeding factsheet

St John’s Wort and Breastfeeding

Sadly the incidence of post natal depression and anxiety has increased and even doubled during the pandemic and we know that many find it hard to go to see their doctor or fear that they will be told to stop breastfeeding to take medication. Some prefer a more natural, herbal remedy and will purchase St John’s Wort. This is the information on the compatibility of hypericum with breastfeeding. If you want to discuss your medication and suitability please email me on wendy@breastfeeding-and-medication.co.uk .

St John’s Wort and breastfeeding factsheet

Breastfeeding and Chronic Medical Conditions, Wendy Jones

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