The MMR vaccine is the best known way to prevent severe cases of measles. Measles is contagious to both vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals. Evidence supports that those who do receive the MMR vac...
Breast milk confers both direct and indirect infant benefits through at least 6 months of age and is recommended by the WHO and AAP to continue until 24 months. General anesthesia and most perioperat...
Empower yourself with knowledge and confidence, and remember that you have the right to question and understand the healthcare decisions that affect you and your baby.
Many women are eager to lose weight after childbirth. However, a common concern is how to do so safely without compromising milk supply. Self-compassion is very important in this process as societal p...
In recent decades, domperidone has gained popularity in the breastfeeding community and has been used off-label to treat low milk supply. Domperidone’s major drawbacks are rare, but severe, including ...
Rain, shine, winter, summer, or any time spent outdoors leaves skin vulnerable to damage from the sun’s harmful UV rays.
Regularly wearing sunscreen is clinically proven to reduce the risk of squam...
The InfantRisk Center receives daily inquiries regarding herbal supplements and their safety. In this article, we will discuss why we have not historically given recommendations regarding herbals and ...
Migraines are very common in women of childbearing ages and can range from mild to debilitating. Many women feel that if they become pregnant or decide to breastfeed, that their options will be limite...
Breastfeeding with mercury fillings or after dental amalgam restoration is likely safe, and the benefits of breastfeeding outweigh the risks. Extra-cautious mothers could choose not to breastfeed for ...
When medical-grade honey (like MediHoney) is used by breastfeeding moms on cracked nipples, it is probably not harmful to the breastfed infant. There are some actions you can take to make it safer.
Vegan diets are becoming increasingly popular worldwide. Evidence suggests that vegan diets may prevent long-term health consequences, but what does this mean for your baby? Diets that exclude all an...
Choline has become a “hot topic” for nutrition in pregnancy. Data suggests that most pregnant women in the U.S. don't get enough. Are you getting enough?
Everything you need to know to decide if the Pitcher Method could be a good choice to manage your pumped milk. Benefits, Challenges, Safety, and Guidelines.
If you're a mom addicted to opioids during pregnancy or while breastfeeding, there are treatments available to help you reach recovery and protect your baby!
When a mom develops a recurrent vaginal infection and resistance to first-line agents, she has limited options. Is boric acid safe to use in lactating mothers with treatment-resistant vaginal infectio...
Monkeypox is an infection that requires special consideration during pregnancy and breastfeeding: it is expected to transfer into breastmilk, and fetal infections have been reported (vertical transmis...
Breast milk is the optimal source of nutrition for infants that are essential for growth and development, however, breast milk typically contains an insufficient amount of vitamin D for breastfed infa...
The postpartum period can be a magical time when a mom finally gets to meet and spend time with their new baby. However, this time can also be challenging for many mothers.
If Botox injections have become a regular part of your wellness routine, you may wonder whether they are safe while breastfeeding. Let's take a look at the research.
Drinking alcohol doesn't have to be a barrier to safe breastfeeding. Use our calculator to find out how long it will take for alcohol to be eliminated from your breastmilk.
For decades, prenatal vitamins have been available and recommended by providers. Pregnancy is a time of intense physiological change both for mother and baby, and appropriate supplementation of variou...
Esketamine can be part of the psychiatric management of treatment-resistant depression and its compatibility with breastfeeding is currently unknown. Esketamine likely penetrates breastmilk to a low d...
Infants’ immune systems are immature, so they rely on maternal antibodies given through breast milk. Maternal vaccination and subsequent breastfeeding can provide the benefits of vaccination to infant...
Caffeine is the most widely consumed stimulant in the world. As such, the safety of caffeine-containing drinks during lactation can raise a lot of questions for new mothers. Post-partum fatigue and fr...
For most lactating mothers with ADHD, the benefits of breastfeeding outweigh the risks of concurrent treatment with stimulants, the most commonly prescribed medications. Few patients with ADHD require...
Vitamin K is an essential intervention recommended for all newborns to prevent Vitamin K Deficiency Bleeding (VKDB), and has been part of newborn care since 1961. Unfortunately, parental refusal of ne...
Untreated brucellosis is one of the few true contraindications to breastfeeding. But how do you treat a breastfeeding woman, and for how long should you withhold breastfeeding?
Even in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, breastfeeding is still safe and highly recommended. Current guidelines from all of the major health organizations, including the World Health Organization, U...
More research is being done on prevention of early menopause and a study recently published in JAMA found that pregnancy and breastfeeding may decrease risk of early menopause.
Cosmetic breast surgery is popular in the United States. According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, breast augmentation was the most popular cosmetic surgery in 2019. Some evidence indicat...
Many parents would like their children to develop taste preferences for a wide variety of foods, particularly healthy foods like vegetables. Food taste and flavor play a large role in food choices and...
Monoclonal antibodies are molecules created in a lab to function like antibodies of the immune system and are important in the treatment of organ transplant, chronic inflammatory diseases like rheumat...
Clomiphene is a common drug that women use to help stimulate ovulation. Clomiphene increases the chance that eggs will be released from a woman’s ovaries by stimulating the secretion of several hormo...
As cold and flu season swings into full effect, runny noses, coughing, and body aches leave many breastfeeding mothers wondering whether some quick relief from over-the-counter medications could negat...
Zika virus is a flavivirus transmitted by the Aedes mosquitoes. Only 20% of adults infected will have clinical manifestations such as low-grade fevers, itchy rash, joint pain in the hands and feet, an...
Nexplanon has become a very popular contraceptive method in recent years because it lasts for 3 years and you do not have to take a pill every day. While the idea of an implant under the skin is daunt...
When looking at the research for IUD insertion, we first must ask “what type of IUD are you interested in?”. Copper IUDs (ParaGuard), do not release any hormones and thus do not affect breast milk pro...
Legalization of recreational cannabis use in several states has caused growing unease in the medical community regarding the health risks associated with this drug, especially in pregnant and breastfe...
Kratom was on the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) list of drugs of concern since 20051 and was almost reclassified as a Schedule I drug in 2016. The reclassification was eventually put on hold du...
The benefits of fish and shellfish, collectively termed “seafood” as part of a balanced, healthy diet have been described. Seafood is low in saturated fat and a good source of high-quality protein and...
Lead is an environmental pollutant that serves no useful purpose in the body and tends to accumulate in the body's bony structures based on their exposure. Some studies show that the half-life of lead...
Depression during pregnancy and postpartum is fairly common, affecting anywhere from 15% to 25% of women. Antidepressants [link antidepressants] are an important part of the treatment arsenal for depr...
Breastfeeding is recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics as the exclusive source of nutrition for feeding young infants for the first six months of life. Data suggest that not only are there...
When faced with a health concern, the first place that many people go is the internet. Although having medical advice at your fingertips is convenient, your search bar may not be the best bet for obta...
The amount of a drug that is excreted into breastmilk depends on a number of kinetic factors. Using these kinetic terms, one can frequently estimate the probability that a medications will enter will,...
There are basically two reasons that a mother's milk is red. Sometimes a small rupture in a blood capillary in the nipple or the breast may turn milk pink. The second reason is a bacterium called Serr...
Current studies indicate that approximately 4% of women in the USA use illicit drugs while pregnant. Seventy five percent of these cases report the use of marijuana. Despite the widespread use of this...
A recent study estimated that 1 in 5 Americans are at risk for vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that is naturally present in a handful of foods (e.g. fatty fish or cod liver oi...
Migraines frequently affect women during their childbearing years. During pregnancy and breastfeeding, women need to be cautious about the medications they are using to treat their migraines. A variet...
Head lice or Pediculus humanus capitis, attack as many as 12 million children every year. Lice are spread by direct contact with infested hair. Sharing combs, brushes, beds, and hats may also contribu...
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life and supports the continuation of breastfeeding through the first year of life along with the init...
Recently, the InfantRisk Center was asked to comment on the use of a new, extended-release bupivicaine product called Exparel. This drug is applied to surgical wounds and provides local anasthesia ove...
Celiac disease is an autoimmune enteropathy triggered by components of the gluten protein found in many cereal grains. Also known as “non-tropical sprue” and “gluten-sensitive enteropathy,” this condi...
Clinical depression is more than just sadness. Although there are clear patterns, the symptoms can be very different from person to person. The most common symptom is called “anhedonia,” or no longer ...
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is an umbrella term encompassing ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. These two syndromes of chronic inflammation commonly affect women of childbearing age. About 1...
A typical pharmacy has shelf after shelf of medicines that can be sold without a doctor's prescription. These are called over-the-counter (OTC) drugs. Many concerned mothers wonder about the safety of...
A typical pharmacy has shelf after shelf of medicines that can be sold without a doctor's prescription. These are called over-the-counter (OTC) drugs. Many concerned mothers wonder about the safety of...
A typical pharmacy has shelf after shelf of medicines that can be sold without a doctor's prescription. These are called over-the-counter (OTC) drugs. Many concerned mothers wonder about the safety of...
Adult acne during pregnancy and breastfeeding is a common problem. Under these circumstances, the adrenal glands secrete higher levels of androgen hormones that cause the sebaceous glands in the skin ...
While the consumption of alcohol is well known by the medical community as a potential hazard to a fetus, alcohol use during lactation is commonly a gray area for breastfeeding mothers. This article s...
The evolution of the human brain is a relatively recent occurrence in the world. There are “reward circuits” in the brain, specifically dopaminergic pathways in the mesolimbic system, that provide pos...
Caffeine is the most commonly consumed drug in the world. It occurs naturally in many plants and is chemically added to a wide variety of products. Most coffees, sodas, teas, and chocolates, as well a...
Phenylketonuria (PKU) is an inherited metabolic disorder in which an affected person is less able to process the amino acid phenylalanine. Abnormally high levels of phenylalanine in the blood and tiss...
G6PD deficiency is a metabolic disorder in which an enzyme in red blood cells, Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase, does not work as well as it should. This deficiency makes the blood begins to break do...
Neonatal hypoglycemia (low blood sugar in a new baby) is a common problem in hospital nurseries. Some infants can have low blood sugar and show no symptoms, others become jittery and may feed poorly, ...
A recent study explored the relationship between maternal colonization (bacteria on the mother’s skin surface) with Methicillin Sensitive Staphylococcus Aureus (MSSA), during pregnancy and delivery to...
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. In 1990, the incidence of breast cancer was 5–7 per 100 women in developed countries in patients less than 70 years of age, and 1–2 per 100 in Asian a...
Asthma is a common chronic inflammatory disease of the airways characterized by recurring symptoms of reversible airflow obstruction and bronchospasm. Symptoms include wheezing, coughing, chest tightn...
Schizophrenia is a psychotic disorder, which causes severely impaired thinking, emotions, and unusual behaviors. Schizophrenic patients are typically unable to recognize sensory stimuli and may have e...
Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease that affects the brain and spinal cord. Episodes can last for days, weeks or months and alternate with periods of reduced or no symptoms at all. Because ner...
A recent study has suggested that use of probiotics in pregnancy and breastfeeding may reduce the risk of eczema in infants. Eczema, also known as atopic dermatitis, is the term broadly applied to a ...
Otitis media is an infection of the middle ear space, behind the eardrum (tympanic membrane). It is characterized by pain, dizziness, and partial loss of hearing. The prevalence of early-onset otitis ...
Cancer is the leading cause of death among U.S children between infancy and 15 years of age. Approximately 11,210 new cases of pediatric cancer were diagnosed in children 0–14 years of age in 2011. A ...
Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the unexplained death of a seemingly healthy baby, usually during sleep. It is also called as crib death.It is the leading cause of post neonatal death in develo...
Ovarian cancer is a malignant growth arising from the ovary. In the US almost 20,000 cases of ovarian cancer were reported in 2006. Symptoms may include: bloating, pelvic pain, abdominal pressure, abd...
A recent study has suggested that a history of not being breastfed may be associated with a higher risk of subsequent major depression in adulthood.1 In this study of 52 female and male adults with a ...
Pyloric stenosis (PS), also known as infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis, is caused by hypertrophy of smooth muscles of the pylorus. The pylorus is the outlet of the stomach and therefore its con...
In 2003, a report was published which reviewed the poisoning of newborns by the inadvertent use of intramuscular or oral methylergonovine (at adult doses) directly in infants. Thirty-four cases were r...
Breastfeeding appears to protect infants from infection. In a study by Dewey et al, infants who breastfed had a lower incidence of diarrhea, otitis media (ear infection), and upper respiratory infecti...
The importance of managing maternal postpartum pain is widely recognized. Yet how to provide treatment that is protective of the neonate while simultaneously providing adequate maternal therapy has no...
Anaphylaxis is a severe, systemic allergic reaction that can be potentially life threatening. A massive release of histamine from the tissues causes a drop in blood pressure, narrowing of the airways,...
Most women who breastfeed exclusively stop having menstrual periods.This is known as lactational amenorrhea and during lactational amenorrhea, the potential for ovulation is reduced. Subsequently, the...
Pain is the most common reason that patients seek medical attention. Pain is a symptom with an extremely broad differential diagnosis. Effective treatments are based on proper diagnosis. The source, s...
In the USA and many other countries, the predominant enterohemorrhagic E. coli subtype associated with disease is E. coli O157:H7. Recently, a large number of cases of antibiotic-resistant E. coli O10...
Potassium iodide was approved by the Food and Drug Administration(FDA) in 1982 for thyroid protection from radioactive iodine accidents. Of the many radioactive elements released by nuclear accidents...
There has recently been a lot of discussion in the news about the potential hazards of taking antidepressants while pregnant. Some researchers are concerned that they increase the risk of birth defect...
Results of a new study have just been released regarding breastfeeding and its confirmed protective effect against infections. This is very exciting and up-to-date news. While we all know by know that...
Initiation of breastfeeding as early as possible is beneficial for the mother and the child, (short-term and long-term); this view is now commonly accepted and commonly practiced. Skin-to-skin contact...
Although it is currently thought that nipple piercing for the most part does not affect milk supply in a breastfeeding woman, there are case reports that show that trauma caused by nipple piercing can...
