Alcohol during pregnancy
Information on alcohol and pregnancy including breastfeeding, supporting alcohol free pregnancies and tips to stay alcohol-free.
The Australian Alcohol Guidelines recommend for women who are breastfeeding, not drinking alcohol is safest for their baby.
Any amount of alcohol the mother drinks, passes through the mother’s blood into breast milk. Because of this, breast milk has the same amount of alcohol as the mother’s blood.
It takes about two hours for the body to clear one standard drink from breast milk for an average woman. If a mother breastfeeds her baby while there is still alcohol in her breastmilk, the baby also drinks the alcohol.1
Alcohol and breast milk
A baby’s brain keeps developing after its born, which means the brain is still sensitive to damage from alcohol.2
Alcohol in breast milk can disrupt the hormones needed to successfully breastfeed, and can negatively affect feeding behaviour and sleeping patterns of a breastfed baby.1
Choosing to not drink alcohol is the best option for a mother and baby when breastfeeding. If you decide to drink, planning ahead can reduce the risk of harm to the child. For example, you could breastfeed before having a drink or express milk, so it’s available for the baby when needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. The National Health and Medical Research Council recommend for breastfeeding women, not drinking alcohol is safest for the baby.
Exposure to alcohol through breast milk can be damaging to an infant's development, growth, and sleep patterns.
No. the only way to reduce the amount of alcohol in breast milk is time.
No. Expressing or ‘pumping and dumping’ does not speed up the process, or reduce the amount of alcohol in the remaining breast milk. You will still need to wait for your body to process the alcohol.
Planning ahead can reduce the risk of harm to the child. You can breastfeed before having a drink or express milk, so it’s available for the baby when needed.
Download the Feed Safe app to help keep track of when breastmilk should be free of alcohol. It is available for free, for Apple and Android devices.
- National Health and Medical Research Council. Australian Guidelines to Reduce Health Risks from Drinking Alcohol. 2020. Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra.
- National Health and Medical Research Council. 2020. Guidelines: Practical Information.
Page last updated27 May 2023