Drinking Beer and Nursing: Is it Okay?
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How many times have you heard, “Have a beer while you nurse. It will relax you and help you make more milk.”?
Megan Davidson examines this advice: is it really true???
Megan Davidson
Megan Davidson
Beer for Nursing Mothers
by Megan Davidson
As a mom of two boys who each breastfeed for over a year, I am certainly not opposed to drinking while nursing on occasion (and in moderation, of course), and the American Academy of Pediatrics agrees. Drinking a small amount while nursing is a totally acceptable (and sometimes necessary) indulgence for new (and not so new) moms.
That said, there is a myth in our culture that drinking beer, particularly Guiness, will help to increase milk supply for women with low-supply issues or bring in milk for women who are recently postpartum. Many women are unfortunately even told this by their health care provider, by their doula, or by a lactation consultant. I think this is a dangerous suggestion for new moms and moms with supply issues and I would love to see it stop circulating.
The logic behind this suggestion seems to be that new mothers are stressed and that drinking will help them to relax, thus increasing both their supply and their milk let-down. While I do understand that being a new mother or a mother of a small baby can be stressful, and alcohol can be a method for relaxing, this is dangerous advise for women who are actually facing supply issues. For moms without supply concerns, go ahead and indulge, but for those who need to build their milk supply, staying away from alcohol is important.
Breastfeeding is an amazing process in which hormones in the mother’s body and suckling instincts in the newborn/infant combine to help first establish a milk supply and then maintain it at a level that should match the needs for the growing baby (or babies for mothers of multiples). When women nurse we see the hormones oxytocin and prolactin working together in the body to produce and sustain that milk supply.
A recent study at the University of Pennsylvania took the myth of beer to boost milk supply to the lab and the results were startling. Oxytocin levels fell about 78% in the women who drank and prolactin levels surged by 336% – moving both hormones in the opposite direction of what is seen in nursing mothers with healthy milk supplies.
Thus, when women drink alcohol, their oxytocin levels decrease and prolactin levels increase, which results in LESS milk production, not more. Yet, women report feeling that drinking a beer worked to increase their supply and they often report that their baby appeared to be getting more milk following drinking.
The University of Pennsylvania researchers found that while women were actually producing less milk, and their babies were therefore getting less milk, they felt increased fullness in their breasts, caused by the increase in prolactin levels. It is this feeling of fullness that is often experienced as an increase in milk. Coupled with this increased fullness in the breasts, babies were shown to suck more vigorously at the beginning of nursing sessions with the mothers who had consumed alcohol. This is likely actually caused by the decease in milk supply but it if often experienced as the baby drinking more.
For moms who do not have supply issues, this is not a huge problem as the hormone shifts are temporary and return to the pre-alcohol levels as the alcohol leaves the blood. Yet, for mothers with a supply issue and babies with weight gain concerns, this is a huge issue because babies suck harder (wasting calories) and take in about 20% less milk following a mother drinking. This decrease in breastmilk consumption can have very dangerous results for mothers who may have consumed the beer in the first place in an effort to increase supply and consumption levels.
If you are having supply issues and working to increase your production or if you are a new mother still establishing a healthy milk supply, please consider reading on kellymom.com for suggestions about safe food/herbal galactogogues (milk-makers) such as oatmeal, fengreek, blessed thistle, and alfalfa or information about the pros and cons of the prescription drugs that are available. Brooklyn also has a number of great lactation consultants that can also work with you on building your supply, improving your latch, effectively pumping, or use of a supplementary feeding system, if needed.
Megan Davidson, PhD, is a professionally trained labor and postpartum doula who works with new parents through pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and the early days of newborn care. She teaches babywearing and cloth diapering classes at several Brooklyn stores, as well as in-home consults, and has a passion for helping new parents master these practical parenting skills. Megan lives in Clinton Hill with her husband, Shawn Onsgard, a local piano teacher and composer, and their two children.
I was told “anything with yeast” would help, so it wasn’t so much the alcohol here, as it was the yeast in the beer that I was told would help. Is that ALSO a myth busted?
Unlike the days when I nursed (42 years ago), there was not much information about breast feeding as it was not so popular then as now. However, one piece of advice I did receive was to have a beer while breast feeding as it would make me relax! I probably did this only a couple of times, but I do remember feeling more relaxed at the time. I guess drinking tea or milk would serve the same purpose if one were told to do that.
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Like your new color!
This is really helpful. I was told to drink stout for both of my children. Since i don’t really like it, I didn’t. But it is great to have this myth broken!