Introduction

Most breastfeeding mothers can drink caffeine in moderation. Some babies, particularly those under 6 months, may be more sensitive to mom’s caffeine intake. Babies whose mothers avoided caffeine completely during pregnancy seem to react more to caffeine in mom’s diet. Even if baby is sensitive to the caffeine now, he may not be when he’s a little older — so if you do have to stop or limit your caffeine intake, you can try again when baby is older.

Per Medications and Mother’s Milk (Hale 2017, p. 139-140) caffeine is in Lactation Risk Category L2 (safer); milk levels are quite low (0.06-1.5% of maternal dose) and usually peak 1-2 hours after ingestion. One study has indicated that chronic coffee drinking might decrease iron content of breastmilk (Nehlig & Debry, 1994). The American Academy of Pediatrics has classified caffeine as a “Maternal Medication Usually Compatible with Breastfeeding.” Caffeine is given directly to premature babies (as a treatment for breathing problems) in much higher levels than than those generally found in the breastmilk of mothers who consume caffeine.

If your baby is sensitive to caffeine, it will typically become less of an issue as baby gets older. Newborns have a much harder time metabolizing caffeine than older infants. Preterm or ill infants might also have more problems with mom’s caffeine intake.

Is baby sensitive to my caffeine intake?

According to Breastfeeding Answers Made Simple (Hale Publishing 2010, p. 521), excessive caffeine consumption by the mother (more than 750 mg per day) can result in a baby who shows signs of caffeine stimulation. “If a mother consumes daily 750 mg of caffeine or more – the amount of caffeine in five 5-oz cups of coffee – and her baby seems irritable, fussy, and doesn’t sleep long” she can try substituting caffeine-free beverages for a week or two.

If your baby seems particularly wakeful or fussy and there is a significant amount of caffeine in your diet, you might want to cut back or stop the caffeine for 2-3 weeks to see if it makes a difference. If you cut out caffeine, consider decreasing it slowly since abruptly stopping caffeine can result in headaches or other symptoms.

If caffeine stimulation is a problem for baby, it may take a few days to a week after mom eliminates caffeine for baby to become less fussy.