Smoking and breastfeeding: how not to cause irreparable harm to the child? Smoking while breastfeeding

Everyone knows that smoking is harmful. One cigarette contains about 4,000 toxic components, 70 of which can cause cancer. If a nursing mother smokes, toxic substances enter the newborn’s body along with the milk.

Nicotine is absorbed into the blood within half an hour and then reaches the baby through milk. Therefore, smoking and breastfeeding are incompatible things!

Harmful effects of nicotine

Smoking while breastfeeding negatively affects the quality of milk and the health of the baby and mother. Harmful enzymes primarily constrict blood vessels, which prevents breast milk from coming in in the required volume. In addition, the rate of milk flow into the female breast also decreases.

A smoking mother's milk will be endowed bad aftertaste. So, the baby gradually gets used to the taste of cigarettes. Therefore, many such children begin to smoke already in adolescence.

Nicotine quickly spreads in the still fragile body of a newborn, in which destructive processes begin. The heart, respiratory tract and lungs, digestion and other important organs suffer. Simultaneous breastfeeding and smoking leads to irreversible consequences.

Consequences of smoking

Milk volumes are significantly reduced - when smoking, milk will last for a maximum of six months;
Milk loses vitamins, hormones and beneficial enzymes, protective antibodies. Nutritional value decreases;
Tobacco smoke often causes nausea, allergies, cramps and respiratory tract disease in infants. After all, instead of oxygen, the child receives carbon monoxide, filled with toxic properties;
The body's recovery process will be slow. Nicotine replaces essential substances lost during pregnancy and childbirth. Due to smoking they cannot be restored;
Addiction negatively affects your emotional state and takes away your energy. Mom gets tired quickly, and the baby gets more irritated and capricious;
If the mother smokes throughout the feeding period, the baby may develop heart failure and heart rhythm disturbances;
Mother and baby may develop diseases such as arrhythmia and tachycardia;
Sleep disturbance and insomnia;
The child’s appetite decreases and weight is lost, growth and development slows down, and immunity deteriorates;
Allergy to nicotine in 99% of cases - rash, inflammation and redness, runny nose and cough;
Tendency to lung diseases, asthma;
Predisposition to cancer;
The risk of sudden infant death increases.

How to reduce the harm from smoking while breastfeeding

Smoking while breastfeeding causes irreparable harm health and development of the child, which is incomparable with the “pleasure” of an addiction.

The influence of cigarettes can only be reduced by completely quitting smoking. If you do not want or cannot quit smoking, then there is the option of switching to artificial formula feeding.

Of course, breast milk is always preferable for feeding a baby. According to some experts, smoking up to five cigarettes a day does not greatly affect the quality of milk. However, each baby has an individual reaction. In some cases, newborns themselves refuse milk due to the strong smell and unpleasant taste.

Smoking and breastfeeding or switching to artificial nutrition? Today there is no clear answer. It is not known whose immunity will be healthier: an “artificial” child or one fed with milk containing nicotine.

If you do not want to switch to artificial mixtures, then try to reduce the number of cigarettes you smoke. As mentioned earlier, the maximum allowed quantity is 5 pieces. You can smoke only during the day and at least 2 hours before feeding.

Do not smoke in the same room as your child or while walking near the stroller. Keep the time interval between cigarettes at 2-3 hours. Drink more fluids as it removes nicotine from the body. It is better if it is drinking water or apple compote.

Is it possible for a nursing mother to smoke electronic cigarettes?

Many smokers replace real cigarettes with electronic cigarettes in an attempt to quit smoking. Electronic cigarettes are compact devices with a replaceable cartridge that contains purified nicotine, glycerin, water and flavorings. This composition often causes an allergic reaction and other negative consequences. In addition, it should be understood that even nicotine-free e-cigarettes still contain a small amount of nicotine.

The electronic device does not burn the larynx and does not injure the mucous membrane of the respiratory tract, like a hookah or regular cigarettes. It does not contain such dangerous substances as a mixture of oxides, benzene and various combustion products. When using such devices, your teeth will not turn yellow and your hands will not smell like smoke. In addition, objects around are not saturated with smoke, and surrounding people do not suffer from it either.

However, numerous medical studies show that they also cause harm. The amount of toxic substance in an electronic cigarette is greater than in a regular one! In addition, such a device does not provide the usual “heaviness” from a puff and does not satisfy the need for nicotine. Therefore, soon a woman will take up a cigarette again and will smoke more often than when using classic tobacco products.

Electronic cigarettes have the following negative effects on mother and baby:

Long-term smoking causes hypertension, diseases of the heart, blood vessels and lungs;
The content of flavors and additives provokes severe poisoning and an allergic reaction;
The baby may experience loss of appetite and refusal of breast milk, slowdown in growth, mental and mental development;
Deterioration of lactation and change in the taste of breast milk;
Digestive dysfunction and increased colic;
Deterioration of the child’s sleep, nervousness and anxiety;
Fatigue and lethargy, low activity, loss of concentration;
Blocking of nutrients, minerals and vitamins in breast milk that the baby needs for full growth and development;
The occurrence of allergies;
Development of asthma and other respiratory diseases;
The appearance of diseases of the lungs and respiratory tract;
Loss of appetite and weight;
Causes dizziness and headaches, migraines, decreased concentration, attention and deterioration in performance;
They do not replace regular cigarettes and do not help you quickly quit smoking or completely get rid of nicotine addiction.

Electronic devices cause serious harm to health and an even stronger “nicotine hit” than regular cigarettes. The consequences of this harm certainly affect the baby’s body. Therefore, doctors under no circumstances recommend that a nursing mother use these devices or switch to them if the woman wants to quit smoking.

If you do use electronic cigarettes, carefully consider the choice of product and liquid for the vaporizer. It is important that these are high-quality, reliable devices with the appropriate WHO certificate. Today on the market you can find many fakes that will only harm the body!

How to quit smoking for a nursing mother

Smoking while breastfeeding is very dangerous. If you don’t want to harm your child so that he will lag behind in development, get sick and also become addicted to this addiction, quit smoking.

It's hard, but you can quit smoking. The main thing is to prepare yourself psychologically and not forget about the baby’s health. In the modern world, there are many different ways to help you stop smoking. Here are a few ways:

Make a list of the positive things you will get from quitting smoking. Saving money, improving health, etc.;
Make a list of restrictions for yourself. Choose four main points that you try to do. Once the rules become part of your lifestyle, add two more rules. By the way, according to experts, addiction occurs after 21 days.
It only takes three weeks to bring useful actions to automaticity;
Do not smoke two hours before meals and do not smoke on an empty stomach. Do not smoke in the morning - delay taking your dose of nicotine as far as possible;
If you need to smoke, do something else that can fully involve you in the process;
Don't carry a lighter with you. If you run out of cigarettes, don’t ask for a cigarette;
Smoke half a cigarette and do not inhale the smoke;
Don't buy more than one pack of cigarettes at a time.
A well-known method is when a cigarette is replaced with candy, seeds or candy. You can also use pharmaceutical products - anti-nicotine patch, special chewing gum or tablets. However, such products and drugs should be treated very carefully. Since during breastfeeding they can cause allergies, colic or poisoning in the baby;
It is better to prefer folk remedies to medications. For example, a herbal decoction.

Decoctions are considered the most effective method. In addition, as already mentioned, the liquid will remove toxins from the body. A safe remedy for breastfeeding is oat decoction.

To prepare such a decoction, pour one tablespoon of oat grains or cereal into 400 ml of warm water and put it in the refrigerator for 12 hours. after that, boil the oats for 15 minutes. Add a spoonful of calendula marigolds to the solution, pour into a thermos and leave for 45 minutes. You can drink this product only for one day, since oats in this form tend to spoil quickly.

We hope that at least some methods will help you overcome your bad habit. Remember that smoking during lactation kills you and your baby.

As sad as it may be, many new mothers are active smokers who are not aware of the danger they are exposing their babies to, being “of sober mind and blessed memory.” Let's see why smoking while breastfeeding is not just undesirable, but unacceptable.

From this article you will learn:

On forums, topics are often created in which young mothers ask approximately the same question:

"If I'm breastfeeding, can I smoke?"

“I really want to smoke, but I’m afraid of harming the child. Or maybe everything is not as scary as I think?

The opinions of forum users on this issue are divided: some insist that smoking while breastfeeding is definitely not allowed, others write this:

“Well, if you REALLY want it, then you can.”

“Yes, smoke, I smoke/smoked, and everything is fine.”

So who is right, and what the dubious pleasure may turn out to be - read on.

Pitfalls of smoking while breastfeeding

The first thing a nursing mother needs to understand is that nicotine is a type of narcotic substance, albeit a mild one, but a drug! Like any drug, it causes a stable addiction and is instantly absorbed into the blood, then travels through the blood vessels to all systems of the body, including the mammary glands, simultaneously saturating them with combustion products of tobacco products:

butane;
cadmium;
carbon monoxide;
ammonium;
methanol;
arsenic;
methane
butane and many others other harmful substances.

Also, cigarette lovers need to know that nicotine can accumulate in milk, which poses a risk of severe intoxication for infants. Smoking, especially regular smoking, turns a healthy and natural baby food product into a terrible poison.

Well, now about other dangers of smoking while feeding that lie in wait for both mother and child:

Decreased lactation;
Acceleration of the mother’s metabolism, which significantly “wears out” her body;
Sleep and appetite disturbances;
Disturbances in the autonomic nervous system;
Increased and subsequent inhibition of bronchial function;
Developmental delay;
Decreased immunity;
Disruption of the gastrointestinal tract.

Research shows that children whose mothers smoked while breastfeeding:

Poor weight gain;
Suffer from various types of allergies;
They are characterized by increased excitability, aggressiveness and irritability;
Suffer from prolonged attacks of intestinal colic;
Cry often and for no reason;
Suffer from serious colds, including bronchitis, pneumonia and false croup;
Later they master basic skills;
Spit up profusely;
Severely susceptible to diarrhea, constipation and cramps;
They often die from the symptom of sudden death of infants in the first year of life (sleep apnea).

Not enough milk

Nursing mothers, when lighting another cigarette, must understand that they themselves are slowing down the process of production of the “milk” hormone prolactin, which means that the quantity and quality of their milk will fade away over time.

It is almost impossible to restore lactation under such circumstances - it seems that nature itself protects the child and does not allow the mother to poison the defenseless creature.

Refusal of breast milk

Another problem that a woman faces when breastfeeding is her child’s refusal to milk. And this is not surprising: nicotine gives it a peculiar bitter taste and tobacco smell, to which children are extremely susceptible. Few people want to eat a foul-smelling substance.

Slow milk flow

Smoking has a narrowing effect on blood vessels, as well as on the milk ducts. It is no wonder that it becomes very difficult for the baby to obtain the required portion of milk in full.

Painful colic

Smoking mothers expose their children to severe colic, which is provoked by activation of the receptors in their small and large intestines. The period of the attack doubles, and it is not possible to alleviate the suffering in any known way.

Increased susceptibility to allergic reactions

Children of smoking nursing mothers are almost 100% likely to become allergic, and identifying the causative agent of the allergy is extremely difficult. The reason for this is toxins that block the protective functions of their undeveloped immune system, which is why the disease gains strength, manifesting itself for no reason in the form of numerous rashes, redness, itching and other symptoms.

Underweight

Smoking by a nursing mother is directly related to the problem of underweight and the level of mental development of her baby. This happens because carbon monoxide (and its components) prevents the saturation of the blood with oxygen, which affects the brain, and nicotine seriously complicates the functioning of the digestive system, and as a result, food is poorly absorbed, and the baby’s body does not receive the nutrients that are so necessary for its development.

Is it possible to protect a child by combining breastfeeding with smoking?

Even after reading all the above information, the question of the possibility of combining breastfeeding and smoking will remain open for many. It’s up to you to be the judge, but since the WHO claims that “a mother who smokes is better than bottle-feeding,” here are several ways to protect a child from the harmful effects of nicotine on him:

You cannot smoke in the room where the baby is. If you want to relax, go to the balcony and close the doors tightly behind you;
Limit the number of cigarettes you smoke per day. The fewer harmful substances enter the mother’s body, the less the baby will receive through breast milk;

Pregnancy and the period after childbirth are probably the most crucial moments in the life of every mother. After all, the state of her body – both physical and psychological – directly affects the health of the baby. Therefore, smoking while breastfeeding is just as harmful as during pregnancy.

Some women wonder if cigarettes and breastfeeding are compatible? It is impossible to answer unequivocally, but one thing is clear - nicotine has a detrimental effect on the body, especially if it is as weak as that of a newborn baby. And the first advice of any pediatrician or obstetrician is to quit smoking. Moreover, it concerns both mother and father. After all, even passive smoking during breastfeeding causes serious harm to the baby.

The mechanism of immunity destruction due to smoking during breastfeeding

The clear dangers of smoking while breastfeeding are as follows:

A baby fed on the milk of a smoking mother is very susceptible to nervous system disorders. Don't be surprised if he sleeps poorly, refuses to breastfeed, loses weight, or cries frequently;
Even if the mother smokes passively (if the father smokes), the baby is at risk. Such children often develop chronic bronchitis, asthma, croup, pneumonia and other bronchial diseases at an early age. In addition, tobacco smoke increases the risk of sudden infant death or lung cancer;
Nicotine destroys vitamin C in the mother’s body, which naturally affects the child;
Often, smoking during breastfeeding provokes severe colic, nausea, diarrhea and other gastrointestinal disorders in the baby. Although they occur in almost all children, cigarettes only aggravate and prolong the problem;
Nicotine is a drug. And a weak child’s body gets used to it much faster than an adult. So both active and passive smoking while breastfeeding can easily lead to the fact that already in adolescence your child will begin to “indulge” in cigarettes;
Nicotine reduces milk production, which leads to early weaning of the baby.

It must be said that deciding to transfer the baby to artificial feeding and continuing to poison him with tobacco smoke cannot solve the problem. On the contrary, even mother’s milk spoiled by nicotine will at least somehow protect the baby from the harm caused by smoking during breastfeeding.

So, despite your bad habit, do not stop breastfeeding for as long as possible. Moreover, only after three years, after quitting cigarettes, the body is completely cleansed of nicotine.

How to protect your baby while smoking while breastfeeding

It is clear that when smoking while breastfeeding, the consequences will not keep you waiting. To somehow reduce the risk of chronic diseases and protect the baby from the harmful effects of nicotine, you need to:

Reduce the number of cigarettes you smoke to at least 5 per day. Naturally, less is better, more is worse for the child;
Do not breastfeed your baby within 1 hour of smoking. The ideal interval between cigarettes and feeding is 3 hours. During this time, nicotine has time to weaken its effect and is partially eliminated from the body;
Increase your diet, as nicotine reduces milk production, and eat fresh, healthy foods. Consult your doctor, perhaps he will prescribe you a complex of vitamins for nursing mothers, because the lion's share of nutrients from foods is not absorbed when smoking;
Drink plenty of clean water - it removes waste and toxins, which will contribute to better milk production;
Do not take your baby after smoking without first changing clothes, washing your hands and rinsing your mouth;

Although following these recommendations reduces the risk, smoking while breastfeeding one way or another can have unpleasant consequences for your baby. Therefore, you need to do everything possible to get rid of such a bad habit.

Methods to combat smoking

Undoubtedly, it is better to completely stop smoking while breastfeeding. Moreover, both mom and dad. Of course, this is not easy for nicotine addicts. But this is exactly why there are a lot of techniques and aids.

Parents of a newborn baby can try joint visits to a psychotherapist, nicotine patches, rinsing the mouth with silver nitrate (forms an aversion to cigarettes), hypnosis or acupuncture.

But nothing will help unless it is the strongest motivation. And what, if anything, should motivate your child’s health and future 100%? After all, you will save not only him, but also yourself, and the baby needs healthy parents. So, it is necessary to train willpower, stimulating yourself either with folk remedies or with modern methods.

The first thing doctors recommend to do is give up foods that cause smoking: spicy, smoked, salty dishes, as well as alcoholic drinks (this applies more to dad, because a nursing mother shouldn’t drink alcohol anyway) and coffee.

Then it's worth use the principle of substitution– increase consumption of foods containing nicotinic acid. These include chicken eggs, potatoes, legumes, nuts (particularly peanuts), and whole grain bread.

Costs workout or breathing exercises. Physical activity helps cope with the urge to smoke and minimizes the negative consequences of quitting cigarettes. In order not to break loose, purchase electronic or phytocigarettes.

If you want to quit cigarettes, you can turn to traditional methods, homeopathy or dietary supplements - all of these products are made on the basis of natural herbs. You can use infusions, herbal teas, elixirs, lozenges, etc.

But the main thing is to control yourself and think about your baby. Imagine what problems may arise in its development if you do not give up cigarettes. Say no! smoking while breastfeeding - do not deprive yourself and your baby of a full life!

I like!

Smoking and feeding your baby milk at the same time is certainly unacceptable. But, despite the harmful effects of cigarettes on the body of mother and child, in our society, especially in the metropolis, there are smoking nursing mothers. Many mothers manage to quit smoking only after learning that they are pregnant. Many girls leading a carefree lifestyle, as soon as they see 2 lines on a pregnancy test, immediately or after a few days decide to quit smoking. It’s one thing when you poison your body and harm your health, it’s another thing when the life of an unborn child and his health are in your hands. And the thought of smoking disappears somewhere - the girls enter into a new consciousness - “I am a future mother.” It happens that toxicosis of the first trimester completely discourages the desire to smoke - here the body itself intervenes in the situation because it now has other needs - to preserve the fetus, to provide everything necessary. Morning sickness is a sign of hormonal changes - there’s no time for a cigarette. It is a great success if the expectant mother manages to give up this bad habit. And if not?

In this article I will not condemn or “feed” morals. I just want to analyze this situation in detail: a nursing mother smokes, how to reduce the harmful effects on the child?

I want to debunk one myth right away.

MYTH: If mommy smokes, then it’s better not to feed her.

Vice versa! If mommy smokes, she really needs to continue breastfeeding. Nicotine certainly appears in breast milk, as well as in the mother’s blood. But at the same time, breast milk softens the harmful effects of nicotine and protects the baby’s body. You cannot continue to smoke and switch to artificial formulas to feed your baby - the child will become a passive smoker, but he will not have the life-saving protection of breast milk. The artificial mixture will not protect him from cigarette smoke. Therefore, if you are breastfeeding, feed as long as possible.

Continuing breastfeeding will protect your baby as much as it can, but not 100%. Nicotine entering the body of infants makes them more restless. In such children, colic is more common and lasts longer. Such babies are more susceptible to respiratory diseases. A child who receives milk from a smoking mother is more likely to develop an allergic disease. And, of course, since nicotine by its nature is a narcotic substance, accordingly, the child will be addicted to nicotine and in the future there is a high probability that he will also become a heavy smoker, like his parent.

I was in the maternity hospital in the same room with my smoking mother. This mother ran to smoke 10 times a day (and even at night). Her baby was more restless. Mom didn’t understand why her child kept waking up and crying, while the neighbor’s child (that is, mine) slept peacefully after feeding. The doctors explained to this mother that the child was also addicted to cigarettes. The child simply receives his dose of nicotine through milk.

Nicotine affects milk production, in particular it inhibits the production of prolactin (the hormone responsible for milk production). A smoking mother runs the risk of ending breastfeeding earlier than she planned due to lack of milk. Nicotine speeds up metabolism (metabolism), so a smoking mother burns more calories and she and her baby need more food. Children whose mothers smoke experience less weight gain.

Pediatricians claim that Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS in Russian literature) occurs more often in children of smoking parents.

Recommendations for organizing breastfeeding for a smoking mother

Since smoking affects milk production (prolactin formation), it is strictly necessary not to smoke from 10 pm to 8 am.
Smoking only after feeding, if there is at least 2 hours left before the next feeding
Smoking as little as possible.
Drink more fluids and eat well, taking into account all the necessary proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals.
And, of course, do not smoke in front of your child.
On my own behalf, I would still advise you to quit smoking.

Here are some stories from life:

On one forum, one young mother writes that she smokes and breastfeeds and is very tormented by torments of conscience. Another mother with a history of smoking answers her this way:

"I know what you mean. I promised myself 100 times that I would get rid of this habit. And so I suffered throughout my pregnancy. My baby is now 6 months old and I still smoke. But we're doing great. I smoked for 10 years and with such experience it is impossible to quit. Any further - if you quit abruptly - you won't have any problems. If you become nervous, the milk will run out. Do you need it? My advice to you is to relax, being nervous will only increase the number of cigarettes you smoke. Try to smoke less, and you and I don’t need to be nervous.”

Here's another

“My experience is 12 years. But 3 days was enough for me to quit smoking. I just found out that I was pregnant. When I smoked, I firmly told myself: Honey, when you get pregnant, no cigarettes. In fact, pregnancy turned out to be a way for me to quit. Of course, later I wanted to smoke, and Alan Cara’s book “The Easy Way to Quit Smoking” helped me here.

Here's another

“I read A. Kara’s book “The Easy Way to Quit Smoking” and quit smoking. For half a year...Then everything came back. I got pregnant and “thought” for 3 days, after which I gave up. Apparently, 3 days is the deadline for pregnant women to change their minds. When my son turned 9 months old, I terribly missed cigarettes. I started smoking again. But now I smoke very little and only once. And my soul suffers from the fact that I’m poisoning the baby with this nasty thing...”

Here's another

“I have been smoking for 15 years and have been smoking non-stop. Even when I was carrying my daughter, I fed her later. My baby was born healthy. I was able to feed her until she was almost 3 years old, there was plenty of milk. My daughter entered the 7th grade, and I never held a cigarette in her hands. My second baby was recently born. And again the same story: pregnancy, breastfeeding with a cigarette in hand. I think all the time about quitting. That my children and my husband need me to be a healthy mother. I read books, went to seminars, and used different gums and patches. Nothing helped me. Now I think why did I start smoking??? Why do I condemn myself and my children to suffering? Why am I putting myself at such a risk to my health? Smoking is a terrible disease, a terrible habit! Girls! avoid smoking! Don't start smoking! Those who already smoke, quit before it's too late. Quit before things get worse. Don’t ruin your life!”

“It happened like this for me. I smoked before pregnancy and during the first 5 weeks. Then I quit. And at 30 weeks, my husband said that he was leaving me and abandoning our child. Out of grief, I again took up cigarettes and smoked until the birth. I don’t know how, apparently God took care of the child - the son was born with a good weight and healthy. Everything is fine with us now, I still smoke, but only at night. My conscience constantly torments me, I just can’t quit this poison.”

“I managed to smoke only 1-2 cigarettes a day during pregnancy. At 32 weeks, the waters broke, contractions began... The baby was born cyanotic and small. They put him in an incubator and stuck tubes into him. He was breathing through a mask. Thanks to the doctors, he survived. Every day I prayed to God that my son would not leave me. Only God knows what hell I went through. I forgot about cigarettes. My son is one year old, I breastfeed him. He has grown, become stronger and very developed. Since then I haven't smoked. (My husband, by the way, also quit)

A young mother who smokes has become not a rarity these days, but a cruel reality. Cruel towards herself and the baby, who seems to be receiving adequate feeding, but suffers from harmful substances dissolved in milk. You need to figure out why mother’s smoking is dangerous for the child, and what new mothers are seriously mistaken about.

Smoking during lactation

According to statistics, almost half of women who smoke continue this harmful activity during lactation, and some. Despite the warnings of breastfeeding specialists and pediatricians, many are unable to quit smoking even for the sake of their own baby. This may be due to ignorance of the consequences and complications of such rash behavior.

Nicotine is a plant poison found in tobacco. It is a vasopressor - it can contract the vascular wall and provoke its spasm. In addition to nicotine, cigarettes contain a lot of other harmful components - tars, aromatic hydrocarbons, which also enter the body, dissolving in the blood.

For a baby who is breastfeeding, it is dangerous that nicotine and tar penetrate well into breast milk, as well as into other biological fluids. But how does this affect the child and is milk with nicotine harmful to him?

All harmful components are introduced into milk approximately 30 minutes after smoking a cigarette. The half-life of nicotine and tar is one and a half hours. After three hours, the quality of the milk is restored, but not completely. Complete elimination still does not happen, and even during this period the child will receive a certain portion of pathogenic substances, albeit a small one. It is worth noting the unpleasant smell of smoker's milk: the child is forced to eat this foul-smelling liquid, and some babies even refuse to breastfeed for good.

Myths about smoking during breastfeeding

Misconceptions among mothers who smoke are incredibly popular. Many of them, in fact, are an excuse for harm to the child, but this does not reduce the danger. The prerequisite for the formation of certain myths was the WHO statement that smoking while breastfeeding is better than completely stopping feeding.

It is worth taking a closer look at the main myths on this topic:

Milk is so healthy and nutritious that all the substances from the cigarette are neutralized in it. This is a fundamentally wrong opinion: absolutely all components of food, medicine, alcohol and nicotine that enter the body become part of the composition of breast milk. Therefore, everything that enters the mother’s body passes into the baby’s body. Also, many children are passive smokers literally from birth, because their parents do not care about their health and smoke right in the apartment.
Nicotine gradually enters the milk, so it does not pose a threat to the baby. It is a myth. Nicotine penetrates sufficiently into milk, after which it is absorbed into the baby’s blood after feeding. It has a similar effect on the baby as on the mother herself - it disrupts the functioning of the heart, blood vessels, nervous system, kidneys, leads to a decrease in immunity and a number of other problems. Considering the weight of the child, for a negative effect on the body he needs much less nicotine, and therefore he experiences full harm.
This habit has nothing to do with milk volume. It is not true. Nicotine and other substances inhibit the production of prolactin, which is synthesized by the pituitary gland and is responsible for breastfeeding. Approximately, milk production drops by a quarter, and lactation completely stops after 4-6 months. If the mother smokes immediately after the birth of the child or does not stop smoking even before childbirth, then it will be difficult to establish normal lactation.
The quality of milk from smokers is the same as that of other women. Myth. Hands and mouth acquire an unpleasant odor after smoking. Breast milk will have exactly the same “aroma”, but with less intensity. Not everyone will like this smell, so children of smoking mothers often refuse to breastfeed.

Impact on the child

If a mother does not stop smoking while breastfeeding, it will cause significant harm to the baby. Feeding during pregnancy in itself leads to the birth of a baby with hypoxia, weak, and sometimes even premature. Next, the mother continues to harm the baby by inhaling smoke, as a result of which all the substances from it quickly end up in the baby’s body.

After dissolving in the child’s blood, nicotine has an exciting effect, and this happens after each new portion of cigarettes. As a result, unpleasant consequences from the brain are observed - the baby becomes restless, capricious, sleeps poorly, and often cries.

Attacks of screaming, seemingly unmotivated, can occur several times a day. Weather dependence, frequent regurgitation, and vomiting quickly follow, which is also caused by disorders of the central nervous system.

Thus, if the mother is addicted, the baby smokes with her, but does not do it of his own free will and with great harm to health. When the mother quits smoking, the child experiences symptoms (withdrawal syndrome) for about a month - crying, moodiness, refusal to eat, nausea. Can the pleasure of a cigarette be commensurate with such influence and all the ensuing consequences? Hardly.

Possible consequences

The most serious danger lies in the occurrence of sudden infant death syndrome, which occurs only before the age of one and is registered three times more often in babies born to smoking mothers. If both parents smoke in the house, the risk is 5 times higher! During sleep, a child may stop breathing, and this will not be associated with diseases or organic pathologies.

Other possible consequences of smoking during breastfeeding are:

The child may develop malnutrition, poor weight gain, and height due to poor absorption of nutrients.
The baby constantly suffers from colds due to the increased sensitivity of the bronchi and upper respiratory tract to viruses and bacteria. This causes a complicated course of even simple ARVI, which ends in sinusitis, otitis, bronchitis, pneumonia, laryngitis with attacks of suffocation.
There is a transition of colds into a chronic form. Of course, this also happens in children born to non-smoking mothers, but in babies who are “lucky” to receive nicotine in their diet, chronic disease is observed much more often.
Children regularly experience attacks of abdominal colic, bowel disorders become commonplace, as do vomiting and nausea. This is due to the harmful effects of nicotine on the gastrointestinal tract.
Children may develop abnormalities in the cardiovascular system early, up to the onset of heart failure (more often with existing congenital pathologies, which rapidly progress under the influence of smoking). The child’s heart can also be bothered by rhythm disturbances (arrhythmias), even life-threatening ones.
Children of smoking mothers more often suffer from allergies, which can become chronic and develop into far from harmless forms - bronchial asthma, allergic laryngitis.

In the future, smoking by a mother while breastfeeding also carries the risk of negative consequences for her son or daughter. Research convincingly proves that such children themselves start smoking early – already in adolescence. They suffer from increased irritability and aggressiveness, study worse because they have poor memory and are inattentive. These children account for up to 80% of those who received nicotine as an “additive” to breast milk.

Is it possible to combine incompatible things?

WHO states that if you smoke no more than 5 cigarettes a day, it is better not to stop breastfeeding, since switching to artificial feeding will be more harmful than smoking. Without a doubt, you cannot use this formulation as an excuse for your own actions, and the absence of smoking is an ideal condition for continuing lactation.

The opinion of doctors on this matter is this: it is still preferable to feed the child with formula rather than milk with nicotine, but you will have to decide for yourself.

But what should those who smoke and continue to breastfeed, despite the persuasion of doctors and information on the Internet, do? There are ways to ease the burden on your baby's body.

The rules are as follows:

Reduce the number of cigarettes to 5 per day, or at least reduce their number between 9 am and 9 pm, when the prolactin level increases most actively.
It is better to smoke immediately after feeding occurs - this way less nicotine enters the child’s body. After a smoke break, you can feed only 2 hours later
You need to drink plenty of fluids - this will help the nicotine leave the mother’s body faster
It is necessary to eat well, because the quality of milk, which is already severely hampered by the presence of nicotine, will depend on the amount of valuable substances.
You should never smoke in such a way that the smoke reaches your baby - secondhand smoke is even more harmful than tar and nicotine from breast milk.
After smoking, clothes need to be changed, mouth should be rinsed, teeth should be brushed, hands should be washed. Only then should you approach the child.

And one last piece of advice. It is better for smoking mothers to change to a simple one. Its harm is somewhat less, since it contains only nicotine, no tar or other carcinogens. But it’s better to quit smoking, especially since the health of your own child is worth it!