If you are breast-feeding and get sick with the flu, there is no need to stop nursing. The virus that causes the flu cannot be transmitted through breast milk and providing your child with the many immune factors in your milk can actually help protect him from developing the infection and make the illness less severe if he does get sick.
Inflluenza
The flu is caused by any of the many, ever-changing influenza virus strains that spread around the globe each year. Because new strains are constantly developing, people who have been exposed to one variant of the flu are frequently still vulnerable to other versions. The flu affects the respiratory system, causing a runny nose, congestion and coughing. Many people also experience muscle aches, fever, headache, chills and fatigue. Babies and young children are at higher risk of catching the flu as well as being at higher risk of complications if they do get sick.
Breast Milk and Flu
The influenza virus does not travel into the breast milk of a breast-feeding mother, so there is no risk of transmitting it to your nursing baby this way. In fact, breast-feeding can help protect a vulnerable baby from influenza when the mother is sick. A mother who has been exposed to the flu produces antibodies against the virus, and these antibodies enter the breast milk and travel into the nursing baby or toddler. This helps boost the child's immunity and offers protection against the flu. The superior nutrition offered by breast milk also helps keep the baby's system in top condition to fight off the flu or any other illness your child might encounter.
Transmission
Even though the flu cannot be transmitted through breast milk, the close contact between mother and baby can potentially increase the risk that the baby will catch it by breathing in virus-infected droplets from the mother's coughing or sneezing or from virus particles on her hands. If you have the flu, avoid coughing or sneezing on your baby, whether you are breast-feeding or not. If you need to sneeze or cough, do so into a clean tissue and then immediately throw away the tissue and wash your hands. Some women who have the flu also choose to wear a face mask during breast-feeding to avoid accidentally exposing the baby to the virus.
Considerations
Women who feel too sick to breast-feed can still pump their milk and have someone else feed it to the baby using a bottle. This helps provide the valuable immune factors that can protect the baby against flu even when you don't feel up to breast-feeding. Another alternative is to feed the baby stored milk, which was pumped earlier and kept in the refrigerator or freezer, while you are sick. However, you will still have to pump occasionally in order to maintain your milk supply. Stored milk also has antibodies that can help protect your baby, but they are not specific to the flu. Many antiviral medications are compatible with breast-feeding but ask your doctor about which kind is best to take while nursing with the flu.
References
- Kids Health; Is It Safe to Breastfeed If I Have the Flu?; Mary Gavin; July 2010
- Kellymom.com; Should Breastfeeding Continue When Mom Is Sick; Kelly Bonyata, IBCLC
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: What Should Pregnant Women Know About 2009 H1N1 Flu (Swine Flu)?
- MayoClinic.com; Influenza; August 2010
