Breastfeeding and Medication

Sadly, women often feel they have no alternative but to give up breastfeeding, having been prescribed or purchased medication. In many cases, however, this is unnecessary. This book outlines the evidence base for the use of medication during breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding and Medication presents a comprehensive A to Z guide to the most frequently prescribed drugs and their safety for breastfeeding mothers. Evaluating the evidence for interventions and using a simple format for quickly identifying medications that are safe or unsafe to use, it also highlights those drugs where there is inconclusive evidence. Additional contextual information makes this the most complete text for those practitioners who support and treat breastfeeding women. It:

• provides an overview of the anatomy and physiology of the breast together with hormonal influences to better understand how complications, such as mastitis, arise and inform the approach to their treatme