The App Every Breastfeeding Mom Should Have

[Deleted]

The App Every Breastfeeding Mom Should Have
October 1, 2014 – 9:30 AM – 0 Comments
Kate Rope
By Kate Rope @katerope

Hardly a week goes by when I don’t hear from a friend or acquaintance who has been told to discontinue breastfeeding to go on a medication. They call me because I coauthored a book about medications during pregnancy and breastfeeding. And, I co-wrote that book because I found so little good information or support when I had to take medication during a difficult pregnancy and while breastfeeding.

I still remember where I was standing in my apartment when my rheumatologist told me over the phone (in a chastising tone) that I was going to have to stop breastfeeding in order to “prioritize my health.” But since breastfeeding was about the only thing that had gone as expected with this whole parenting and pregnancy thing, continuing it was key to my health—my mental health.

I told her stopping wasn’t an option, she would have to find a medication I could take while I continued to breastfeed. Guess what? She did. Guess what else? I found a different rheumatologist.

Since writing my book, I have heard from women who needed to take decongestants for colds, antibiotics for urinary tract infections, steroids for nerve pain, anesthesia for minor surgery, and the list goes on. Most were advised to stop breastfeeding temporarily or forever. And though taking a few days’ break may not sound like much, in this age of concern over nipple confusion, many moms worry that two days on the bottle will keep their kids off the breast for good.

Research has shown that needing to go on medication is one of the main reasons women stop breastfeeding before they plan to, which drives Jenny Thomas, MD crazy. Dr. Thomas, a pediatrician and breastfeeding medicine specialist in Franklin, Wisconsin sits on the leadership team of the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Breastfeeding. She says that the research is increasingly showing that “most medications used by mothers are compatible with breastfeeding with little to no impact on breastfeeding babies.”

That’s because medications must take a long journey through your system to your child’s and most drugs don’t weather it well. “In this day and age there’s just too much information to make needing a medication a reason for moms to wean,” says Thomas.

As we head into cold and flu season, I thought it was time to let moms know they don’t have to stop breastfeeding to take care of their health. Here are two places to have good information at your fingertips. I suggest you download one (or both) now.

LactMed, a searchable database of the latest peer-reviewed research on medications and breastfeeding updated monthly by the National Institutes of Health, is Dr. Thomas’s go-to resource. It can be accessed online and downloaded for free to your phone. The entries explain how much of the medication reaches breastmilk or your baby’s blood system and what is known about any possible adverse effects. Where possible, it suggests alternative medications that may be a better choice.
MommyMeds, is a new app released by Thomas Hale, MD and the Infant Risk Center at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. Dr. Hale’s book, Medications and Mothers’ Milk, a staple of pediatricians’ office shelves, is the basis for the app, which costs $1.99 and includes safety ratings for some 20,000 medications and chemicals, a bar code scanner, and information on medication safety in pregnancy. “It is a good resource for mothers with an easy-to-understand rating scale,” says Dr. Thomas.

There are other resources out there for breastfeeding moms (my book, for one), but having this information on your phone at your doctor’s appointments is a game changer according to Thomas. “You can sit there in the orthopedist’s office, type in prednisone, show it to him and say, ‘look, it says it’s fine.’” And then you and your doctor can make an informed decision together. “I love empowering moms,” says Dr. Thomas. Me too.

Kate Rope is an award-winning freelance journalist with expertise in health, pregnancy, and parenting. She is coauthor of The Complete Guide to Medications During Pregnancy and Breastfeeding and editorial director of the Seleni Institute, a nonprofit dedicated to maternal and reproductive mental health. Her writing has appeared in many publications including Fitness, Glamour UK, Mother Jones, National Geographic Adventure, Parade, Parents, Parenting, Real Simple, and Shape. But her most important job is being a mom to two wonderful daughters.

[zeewifeandmama]

Lol I actually DO have this app! ETA: oh wait, I have lactMed

[Deleted]

I have neither, but I'm also breezy about meds and breastfeeding (based on all the research and reading I've done in the last 4 years).

They are great resources, though!

[zeewifeandmama]

I downloaded it what seems like forever ago. I've actually mostly used it to show doctors that things were safe to take. Lol

[anna7602]

I don't have this app, but in case it interests anyone, a month of my being on Diflucan has wrecked my son's digestive system, according to the LC I saw today.

[hilwithonelary]

This is great! I hate hearing medical professionals advising to avoid drugs or pump and dump when it is not necessary. I don't pretend to know everything about every medication while breast feeding, but I have no problem saying, "I'm not sure. If you have a minute, I can look it up."

[winemaker06]

Oct 1, 2014 17:29:53 GMT -5 anna7602 said:

I don't have this app, but in case it interests anyone, a month of my being on Diflucan has wrecked my son's digestive system, according to the LC I saw today.

That really sucks. Why does she say that?
I was on it for a really long time too and my baby has turned out just fine so far!
I did have one primary doctor tell me she wouldn't prescribe it after antibiotics because it wasn't safe. But I explained that the pediatrician and OB knew I had already been on it and approved. They need to get on the same page! So I definitely hope apps like this help!

[water*drop]

I have both apps. I like them both, too. Dr Hale's app is cool because it tailors the results to your kid's age (so, like, if it's something that affects supply, he might categorize it as "avoid if possible" before supply is established and during extended nursing when your supply might be already lower, but list it as "probably okay" for the ages in between...I can't remember his actual wording for the categories, but that's the gist of it) and also does pregnancy (broken down by trimester).

[water*drop]

I find LactMed a little easier for searching, but the barcode scanner on MommyMeds works well if you have the product in front of you.

[greycat]

I have LactMed and love it. I'll definitely check out the other one mentioned.

[Jalapeñomel]

Oct 1, 2014 17:21:39 GMT -5 @tokenhoser said:

I have neither, but I'm also breezy about meds and breastfeeding (based on all the research and reading I've done in the last 4 years).

They are great resources, though!

Me too. I just have a hard time believing that enough of the medication to make a lasting impact is getting into the milk (obviously not all medications....and I am not a doctor).

[potatopie]

this will be very useful. especially when we're seeing doctors in other countries who don't have the latest information.

[rbp]

I take rat poison i.e., Coumadin, and all the doctors I've seen said it's fine for BF. Let's hope they're right, but I'm glad I don't have a bunch of doctors freaking out about meds.

[AmyRI]

Oct 1, 2014 17:29:53 GMT -5 anna7602 said:

I don't have this app, but in case it interests anyone, a month of my being on Diflucan has wrecked my son's digestive system, according to the LC I saw today.

Oh FFS. How are you managing to find every crazy medical professional in such a major city?

Please don't be upset by this. If you're actually concerned about his digestive system, get a pribiotic for him. There is no reason for an LC to make you feel like shit about taking a very much needed medication, and she should be outraged at your OB mistreating you for 2-3 weeks. I'm sorry she was so bad. Please look for a new one.

[simpsongal]

Can they please issue the same article about BFing and alcohol consumption?

[zarapipe]

Thanks!

[badgergrl]

This makes me so angry. My own primary care physician told me I would have to deal with pp anxiety as "we didn't want our little one getting any unnecessary meds."

I was also told I would have to pump and dump for a ct scan.

[Deleted]

Oct 2, 2014 20:53:54 GMT -5 badgergrl said:

This makes me so angry. My own primary care physician told me I would have to deal with pp anxiety as "we didn't want our little one getting any unnecessary meds."

I was also told I would have to pump and dump for a ct scan.

You should be angry. And if you get the chance, you should be angry in person at your doctor.

[rosebud]

Oct 2, 2014 21:00:45 GMT -5 @tokenhoser said:

Oct 2, 2014 20:53:54 GMT -5 badgergrl said:

This makes me so angry. My own primary care physician told me I would have to deal with pp anxiety as "we didn't want our little one getting any unnecessary meds."

I was also told I would have to pump and dump for a ct scan.

You should be angry. And if you get the chance, you should be angry in person at your doctor.

Ita with @tokenhoseron this one

[anna7602]

Oct 3, 2014 11:02:13 GMT -5 @fivedogs said:

Oct 1, 2014 17:29:53 GMT -5 anna7602 said:

I don't have this app, but in case it interests anyone, a month of my being on Diflucan has wrecked my son's digestive system, according to the LC I saw today.

She sucks.  She should be overjoyed that you are still BFing after all of that agony and tell you that you are a rockstar.    

Just getting around to responding to these, AmyRI and winemaker06. The LC was actually great. She thought my OB/gyn should have been monitoring me more closely. The thrush is gone. What I have now are vasospasms, in short. Which continued use of Diflucan won't help, and it was making DS spit up a ton by the time I'd been taking it on and off for a month. 

Im going on a full week now since my last call to the OB/gyn about my symptoms with a request for a call back to discuss and she never called back. Sure, I could have called again, but a) I decided to go the LC route and b) the LC maintains that the doctor should have been checking on me anyway, unprompted, given how resistant the thrush seemed and how many different meds I'd been prescribed. I agree with her.  

[winemaker06]

Thanks for the follow up anna7602.
I'm glad you're getting answers from someone you like and trust! I'm fascinated about the vasospasms, because I still have pain and issues with my nipples turning white. Hopefully there is something you can do to feel better quick!

PS your OB sucks. I really hate the difficulty in getting treatment for these kinds of things lately.

[anna7602]

winemaker06, vasospasms are related to circulation issues, from what I understand of the LC's explanation to me. The nipples turning white is a sign of that. You might want to talk to an LC yourself. It could be caused by a lot of different things, so treatment would differ depending on the root cause.