What to Do When a Breastfeeding Mother Gets Sick
When you're breastfeeding, the motivation to stay healthy for the sake of your baby is much more pertinent.
And when a breastfeeding mother gets sick, one question plagues us: Should I continue breastfeeding my baby?
However, considerations must be taken into account when medications are involved.
Here are tips on how to manage your sickness while you're breastfeeding, and to determine whether it's safe to breastfeed while on medication.
What to Do When a Breastfeeding Mother Gets Sick
1. Consult a specialist doctor AND a lactation consultant
From my experience, it always frustrates me whenever a doctor says I should stop breastfeeding because I am sick or that there are no alternative medications that are safe for lactating moms.
To be fair to other doctors and specialists, they do have the discretion to take the safest route and advise you to temporarily stop breastfeeding.
Which is why it's recommended to consult a Lactation Consultant, in addition to your doctor.
A Lactation Consultant is a pediatrician who, as the term suggests, is an expert on lactation.
They are more well-versed and updated on medications and treatment plans that are relatively safe for breastfeeding moms.
They can also provide tips on how to manage possible health concerns that can affect your baby in relation to your sickness.
2. Double-check if your medications are safe for breastfeeding
While MIMS has always been the go-to reference for drug information, it's actually not the best one if you're checking whether a particular medication is safe for lactating moms.
Most drug manufacturers will indicate as a caveat that not enough studies were done to confirm a drug's safety for pregnancy and lactation.
How to check if a medication is safe for breastfeeding moms
Lactation Consultants are the best source of information whether the medication your doctor gave you is safe for breastfeeding moms.
If you still want to make sure and double-check, you can use the following online medical resources, all of which were provided by my Lactation Consultant:
- E-Lactancia - Best resource for non-medical moms and the quickest, most convenient platform to check a drug's compatibility for breastfeeding. You only need to type in the generic name of the drug, and the website will provide you with information whether the medication is "low risk" (compatible for breastfeeding) or otherwise.
- LactMed (TOXNET) - More suited for moms who are well-acquainted with medical terms. The website provides you with medical case studies and research on the toxicity level of a medication, so you need to read between the lines whether it's safe for breastfeeding or not.
For more information on medication and breastmilk, read the International Breastfeeding Centre's article here.
3. Take necessary precautions to safeguard your baby
Whether you can breastfeed or not, it's advisable to take necessary precautions to safeguard your baby from being infected.
Be sure to also ask your doctor the mode of transmission of your sickness: direct or indirect contact?
Here are other tips to prevent the spread of disease and germs around your house:
- Wash your hands properly with soap and water before holding your baby, and before and after eating and using the comfort room
- Use hand sanitizer in addition to proper handwashing
- Wear a disposable face mask whenever possible
- Cover your mouth and nose whenever you sneeze or cough, and wash your hands afterwards
- Dispose tissues with phlegm and your saliva properly in a trash can, and wash your hands afterwards
- In the case of direct contact transmission (for example, skin lesions), be sure to cover the area when you're breastfeeding or holding your baby
4. Maintain your milk supply
It's not uncommon for a mother's milk supply to diminish slightly during sickness.It may be due to the medications you're taking, or simply due to the stress you're feeling while sick.
If you can breastfeed, be sure to check if you can breastfeed directly (i.e., direct latch) or indirectly (i.e., from a cup or bottle).
Breastfeed on demand to boost your milk supply, or pump on a schedule (every 2 to 4 hours).
If you can't breastfeed, then you need to pump and dump on a schedule too to maintain your milk supply.
Be also sure to watch out for signs of mastitis, an expected occurrence during abrupt temporary weaning.
Why It's Perfectly Okay to Breastfeed When a Mother Is Sick
In the case of viral infections, a person is considered most contagious before he/she even feels sick.
By the time a breastfeeding mother realizes she is sick, your baby has already been exposed to the bacteria or virus.
When a lactating mother is sick and continues to breastfeed, you are protecting your baby from getting sick by providing antibodies to your baby.
A baby may get sick, though, if the infection is transmitted by its respective mode of transmission—for example, from droplets, direct contact to the skin or fluids, air contaminants, food, water, etc.
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