Caffeine and breastfeeding?

Question

I have a newborn (4 weeks) and a toddler (23 months). I usually have a cup of coffee (3/4 cup usually) at 07:00, and then another half cup or so at 13:00. My newborn is EBF. She’s been getting very fussy and gassy in the evenings. From 19:00-22:00 is a nightmare, and then after she eats during the night she also seems very gassy and uncomfortable. I give gas drops and I burp her. I was reading about caffeine and how it has such a long half-life and such. I am wondering if I should cut caffeine and see if it helps? I am really hesitant because I feel I need it to function at this point, but I want my baby to be comfortable. 
Has anyone tried this in a similar situation? Any success?

Answer

I know at that age they go through a phase or witching hour at night. Both mine got super fussy from 7-9 or whenever they finally went to sleep. So it could just be that but if you think it’s the caffeine then try limiting it and see what happens. I know mine didn’t have issues with me drinking caffeine but every baby is different.

Answer

This sounds like a witching hour to me. My baby was the same, it got better around eight weeks and stopped completely at twelve. I didn’t change my caffeine intake at any point. I got a sling and bounced her around in the evenings it was the only thing that calmed her down. X

Answer

Do you put milk or cream in your coffee? I would maybe ask the doctor about milk allergy. I would have never guessed that but we just found out my boy is allergic. That’s how I noticed was that he was getting super gassy. At night he would almost be asleep and then poop uncomfortably and cry screaming. Then we would have to start over on getting him to sleep. I would have never guessed it but then I found a small amount of blood in his poop and they diagnosed it. They can grow out of it so don’t worry. Just another idea if cutting coffee doesn’t work.

Answer

I doubt it has anything to do with it, unless she is sensitive to dairy. 
More likely - thats her witching hour.

Answer

I think it’s worth testing. Some babies tolerate caffeine better than others. Mine was fine if I had 1 cup, but any more than that & he would spit up a ton. The nice thing about caffeine is, you don’t have to cut it out long to see if there is a difference (like dairy you would want to eliminate for several weeks to get a full picture). I’d try 2 days without & see what you notice. Day 3 try 1 cup, day 4 your typical 2 cups.

Answer

I am a coffee drinker too, when I breastfeed or am pregnant I drink decaf to cut the caffeine out definitely helps a lot!

Caffeine and breastfeeding?

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