Once you have given birth to a baby, all kinds of advice’s and suggestions start pouring in for the next phase of life-nursing. Nursing of breastfeeding is an important chapter in raising a baby and is also one of the crucial periods where a female has to take care of many things and try to avoid anything which may harm the newborn. Having a healthy lifestyle as well as a healthy diet is something which every nursing mom should keep in mind.

One common question in the mind of every breastfeeding female is whether they should avoid coffee or not. Well the answer to this is yes. Coffee is high on caffeine content which is considered unhealthy for the baby.

Caffeine Consumption While Breastfeeding

Let’s answer some of the other caffeine related questions in the following part:

1. Does Caffeine Reach my Baby?

Whenever you have a food item that contains caffeine, such as coffee, chocolate or even tea, a small amount of caffeine enters your bloodstream and a little percentage of this caffeine may enter the breastmilk. Thus yes, the caffeine that you consume tends to reach your baby, even if it is in little amounts.

2. Will Caffeine Harm my Baby?

Now we have registered the fact that caffeine definitely reaches the baby through the breastmilk of a nursing mother but the next doubt is whether this caffeine harms the newborn. It is not very clear to what extent does caffeine harm a baby but it is definite that it does harm him/her because it tends to build up in the bodies of infants as they are not able to get rid of it easily.  This may lead to making them restless and irritable.  However, the effect of caffeine on different babies is different.

3. How Much Quantity of Caffeine is Safe When I’m Nursing?

It is surely tempting to have that one cup of coffee or tea, especially during breastfeeding when you tend to get tired easily. But the more caffeine you’ll have, the more will be the risk of it affecting your baby. So cutting down on it completely is definitely the ideal thing to do, but if you are someone who just cannot do without a little caffeine, you can try to minimize it as much as possible.

Women who are breastfeeding or nursing are recommended not to have more than 200 mg of caffeine per day. You must also remember that it’s not only coffee and chocolate that contains caffeine but even sodas, energy drinks, soft drinks and tea may have high quantity of caffeine.

4. What is the Alternative to Coffee/Caffeine?

If you are a coffee addict too for whom it is difficult to give coffee up during nursing, you can try some alternatives such as a fruit juice, decaffeinated coffee or tea, mineral water or even milk to get over your craving.  Infact herbal teas are also without any caffeine content and are also very health for a nursing female.  However one must not have more than 2-3 cups of herbal tea during breastfeeding.

Photo Credit By: medindia.net