Can You Drink a Glass of Wine During Labor...or After?

Can I Drink a Glass of Wine During Labor?

Perhaps your doula or midwife has suggested drinking a glass of wine during early labor to relax your uterus. But if that sounds a little odd to you, your instinct is probably right.

You'd probably need a lot more than one glass of wine to seriously relax you during labor (but not that we recommend that!) When it comes to drinking alcohol while pregnant, less is really better. Alcohol will travel right to your baby through the placenta, and their little brains can’t handle it like ours can!

The AAP says that you should consume no alcohol during pregnancy. Drinking during pregnancy can increase your baby’s chance of being born with a fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). FASD can affect children’s physical, mental, behavioral, or cognitive development. So, before you consider drinking some wine to relax your baby for labor, think about where it will end up.

Drinking While Breastfeeding

If you choose to breastfeed your baby, you’ll want to watch your alcohol consumption. One option is to pump after you drink and throw the milk out. But consuming alcohol while breastfeeding is not as much of an issue as when you were pregnant. A little alcohol can get into the breastmilk, which your baby would then gulp down, but the alcohol gets very diluted in your bloodstream and diluted in the milk.

The American Academy of Pediatrics policy on breastfeeding says that while you should limit your drinking, an occasional drink is acceptable. They recommend waiting at least 2 hours after drinking to nurse.

How Long After Birth Until I Can Have Alcohol?

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