{"id":"526ccfc8cf2caa184ddf41c408b8d09a","slug":"drinking-coffee-while-breastfeeding","question":"drinking coffee while breastfeeding","answer":"The short answer: a cup or two of coffee a day is fine. Caffeine does pass into breastmilk, but the amount is small—research shows it's unlikely to keep your baby awake or affect their heart rate at moderate intake levels.\n\nThe nuance: the evidence on caffeine and breastfeeding is actually pretty thin and mixed. A few older studies hinted that heavier caffeine use *might* link to colic or fussiness, but it's unclear whether caffeine was really the cause. If your baby seems unusually jittery or fussy, it's absolutely worth cutting back for a week or two and seeing if things settle down—that direct observation often tells you more than general guidance can.\n\nEnergy drinks are different, though. Skip those while nursing. They contain untested ingredients and can pass into your milk in ways plain coffee doesn't.\n\nYou don't need to choose between coffee and breastfeeding—just keep it moderate and stay attuned to how your baby responds.","sources":"[{\"title\":\"Effects of maternal caffeine consumption on the breastfed child: a systematic review.\",\"journal\":\"Swiss medical weekly\",\"year\":\"2018\",\"url\":\"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30294771/\",\"label\":\"HIGHLY RELEVANT\",\"score\":0.82},{\"title\":\"Energy Drinks: Implications for the Breastfeeding Mother.\",\"journal\":\"MCN. The American journal of maternal child nursing\",\"year\":\"2016\",\"url\":\"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26909852/\",\"label\":\"HIGHLY RELEVANT\",\"score\":0.786},{\"title\":\"Is Breast Best? Examining the effects of alcohol and cannabis use during lactation.\",\"journal\":\"Journal of neonatal-perinatal medicine\",\"year\":\"2018\",\"url\":\"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29843260/\",\"label\":\"RELEVANT\",\"score\":0.775},{\"title\":\"Caffeine Concentrations in Human Milk Donated to a Human Milk Bank in Japan.\",\"journal\":\"Journal of human lactation : official journal of International Lactation Consultant Association\",\"year\":\"2024\",\"url\":\"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38407091/\",\"label\":\"RELEVANT\",\"score\":0.774},{\"title\":\"Medication Safety in Breastfeeding.\",\"journal\":\"American family physician\",\"year\":\"2022\",\"url\":\"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36521462/\",\"label\":\"RELEVANT\",\"score\":0.771}]","view_count":0,"created_at":"2026-07-09T13:09:39.544Z"}