Cold Remedies While Breastfeeding?

Here is a "tea" recipe that's quite good for coughs:

1 inch or so fresh ginger root, sliced thin or grated
1/2 a fresh lemon, sliced (peel & all)
1 clove garlic, mashed
~2 c water
Very generous spoonful honey
Place water, ginger, lemon, & garlic in saucepan; bring to boil, then turn down heat and simmer gently for 20 min. Strain into mugs and add lots of honey. The tea *will* get stronger if you let it sit! Most invigorating!

You can also make a cough syrup by slicing an oninon very finely and covering it with honey. Cover this mixture and let sit overnight. Strain off the liquid and take a teaspoon 3x per day.

For congestion: saline nasal spray. Also inhaling steam with eucalyptus essential oil.

I would personally avoid all OTC cold medicine while breastfeeding. Hope you feel better soon!

1 mom found this helpful

I have taken OTC cold remedies such as Tylenol Cold and Sinus while breastfeeding. I haven't noticed that it affected my daughter at all. I have heard that medicines that dry up the nose will also decrease the milk supply but I have not found that to be true in my case. If you are miserable I would go ahead and take something. Just make sure you don't take more than necessary and if you co-sleep make sure that you don't take something that will knock you out so much that you lose track of your baby and let her roll out of bed!

S.,

I take Sudafed when I am sick like that. Mainly I take it at night to sleep (the nighttime version), but sometimes the daytime version during the day also if I am really congested. It can dry up your milk a little bit, but it is not enough for the kiddo to notice I don't think. I am breastfeeding also and my little guy was still getting what he needed from me. I took it when I was pregnant as well and the OB said it was fine.
Hope that helps.

~H.

I'm sorry you're suffering of a cold right now, S.!

First, I noticed some people suggested honey for you...just be careful none of it makes it's way to your baby's mouth )i.e. if you had some on your finger and you touched yoru baby's pacifier, etc.) because it can sometimes transfer botulism to infants under a year old. You probably know this, but I thought I'd mention, just in case.

Second, avoid sugar, and eat lots of whole foods. Drink tea to soothe the throat. Get as much sleep as you can. With they dry cough/nasal congestion, I've found that drinking water every time I wake up at night clears me out pretty quickly. Keep a glass of water with you all day and night!

Lastly, I recommend Emergen-C vitamin supplements (packets you stir into water). They're tasty and your body absorbes them better than pills. They come in lots of great flavors.

With a baby this young I would stay away from decongestants. Some are safe to take, but may dry up your milk.
Until my daughter turned 1 the only medication I would take was tylenol. You can also use non-medicated saline spay or do a saline rinse with a neti pot to help out your sinuses.
Warm milk or tea can soothe your throat. If you use an herbal tea it won't have caffeine either (I loved Mama's milk tea).
Get as much rest and liquids as you can... my family doc used to say:"without medication the common cold lasts 1 week, with medication 7 days..."

I am going to suggest the old ways of treating it... Chicken noodle soup, OJ, Tea w/ honey and lemon. You can also take a teaspoon of honey straight to soothe a sore throat and ease the cough. I just dont like taking pills if i dont have to . I also use Ludens throat lozenges.

S.,

Talk with your doctor, but I seem to remember being told to use Dimetapp.

Hope you feel better soon,
M.

cough drops are safe. Although I go with vitamin c drops since it soothes the throat and gives vit c
Otherwise think of treating only one symptom and it is more likely the medicine is safe. Don't do dayquil/niquil since it has alcohol.

S., while breastfeeding, I took Sudafed to ease cold symptoms. Of course, I wouldn't do anything without my doctor's blessing, including using natural remedies. Ask your doctor. Sudafed has always worked really well for me, so I was happy when I got the OK to take it. But that was almost ten years ago, so it's important to check with your doctor. I hope you feel better!

Try taking vitamin c supplements or oranges,and vitamin d which you can get by drinking lots of milk or also vitamin d supplements. and green tea is always good for colds too.

Here is what I did, and is not to be mistaken for medical advice, BUT it has worked ever time, without fail, on my friends, family etc. I drink two,yes two quarts of canned grapefruit juice over ice with enough salt to cover the bottom of the glass lightly, each time I refill it. I drink it non-stop until it is gone, and within 8 hours the cold symptoms are gone leaving only a dry nose. NOW the side effects are of course swelling due to the salt and some have complained of stomach issues while drinking it and while it works its way through your system shall we say...but if you are taking Zocor or similar drugs then you can't have grapefruit.

Aside from that I have found No Time 4 Colds, from Rite-Aid, but I don't know if yhou can take while nursing. Also, it works best when taken at the onset of a cold. So, if you can't take it this cold, you might consider having it on hand for the next time, if there are no warnings against breast-feeding.

Feel better!

T. Nelson CD (DONA)

I am unable to take decongestants and really suffer when I have colds because I have a very small nasal passage. So I take Ocean Nasal spray.

If you go to the pharmacy you can get Ocean nasal spay. It is saline solution that you spray up your nose and works wonders.

S.-

I have had several colds since my son was born 15 months ago. Like you I hate to take anything because I am breasfeeding. The last cold I had I just couldn't stand it anymore and had to get some relief. My son's pediatrician recommended that I take Benadryl. He also recommended it for my son when he had a cold.

Hope you are feeling better soon!

I called my OB to ask about cold medicines when I had a monster cold and my little one was about 4 months old. She said I could take the OTC meds *BUT* anything that dried up the nasal drip would also dry up my milk. SO... I didn't want to risk it. I hope you can find relief another way!