M
y wife and I attended a few prenatal classes at our hospital . In one of the classes , the one in which we learned how to breastfeed the baby , I asked the nurse-instructor if there are any dietary restrictions for the mom during the time she is breastfeeding . Valid question , since during pregnancy mothers have to stay away from uncooked seafood because of mercury poisoning , from cured meats and unpasteurized cheeses because of the danger of bacteria , and from alcoholic beverages since the booze goes straight into the umbilical to the child – and you don ’ t want a pickled child .
The nurse responded that the mom can have sushi ( I think my wife fist pumped at this ), cheeses and cured meats , but she might want to stay away from liquor since unlike the meats , cheese and fish , alcohol can be passed to the child via breastmilk . At this point , a pregnant classmate ' s hand shot up . After the nurse turned to her , she asked how long alcohol stays in the system . The nurse said it depends on the person imbibing ' s metabolism .
The classmate then said she and her partner were getting married right after their child ' s birth – and at the wedding she expressed that she planned on celebra ' in '! with some spirits . My wife and I exchanged " Are we hearing this right ?" looks – since we both knew this lady was planning on getting her drink on ! She then asked if the nurse would recommend pre-storing up some milk before the wedding , to which the nurse said that realistically during the first week after giving birth , moms ' milk production is actually very low since the mammaries were still coming online . Maybe the woman could either postpone her wedding or not drink ? Silence . One could see that this poor woman was truly wrestling with this conundrum .
55 THE CONE - ISSUE # 11 - 2017