Breastfeeding and Medication

Reviews / Votes

`This book is carefully researched and comprehensive yet still easy to read. It will be a valuable resource for anyone prescribing to breastfeeding mothers including pharmacists, GPs and health visitors.' - Sue Ashmore, Programme Director of UNICEF UK's Baby Friendly Initiative.


`Breastfeeding is very important for the health of both the mother and child. Interrupting breastfeeding may lead to permanent weaning of the child, who may refuse the breast after being off the breast for even a few days. Dr Jones' easy to understand, evidence-based information on drugs and breastfeeding will help many physicians prescribe for breastfeeding mothers, and confidently encourage them to continue breastfeeding, rather than interrupt breastfeed which too often happens unnecessarily. This is a necessary text for all prescribers.' - Dr Jack Newman, Newman Breastfeeding Clinic and Institute, Toronto, Canada.


`A true gift in every sense for anyone who works with breastfeeding women...it is a `must' for every GP's surgery, every health visitor's and midwife's office and every midwifery library.' - MIDIRS


'The World Health Organisation and UNICEF strongly advocate the protection, promotion and support of breastfeeding across the globe. It is crucial to ensure that women and families are equipped with the best available evidence with regard to taking medication whilst breastfeeding. However, there have been many situations in which incorrect, inappropriate and conflicting information and advice have been given, including recommending early cessation of breastfeeding. This book written by Wendy Jones, a pharmacist with specialist knowledge of lactation and breastfeeding, will be crucial in ensuring that consistent, evidence-based, culturally sensitive information is provided to breastfeeding women. The book will be invaluable to pharmacists, medical practitioners, breastfeeding supporters, lactation consultants, midwives, health visitors and maternal and child health nurses, across the world. I thoroughly recommend this book as a key resource for all practitioners who support breastfeeding women and their families.' - Fiona Dykes, Professor of Maternal and Infant Health, University of Central Lancashire, UK.


`...[M]y main reference book while on the ABM breastfeeding helpline and barely a session passes that I don't refer to it at least once to give mums information to take back to their GP or other healthcare professional. Wendy Jones has worked out the safety of hundreds of common drugs using a variety of methods and evidence sources, clearly referenced in this book, allowing mothers to make an informed choice about treatment, and giving prescribers the ability to really understand the safety of each drug for breastfeeding mothers. The reference section, which fills about half of the book, is clear and easy to navigate. It includes detailed information on Wendy's conclusions about each drug as well as references and explanations of specific instances of, for example, reported adverse reactions...lf this wasn't enough to make every doctor, health visitor, midwife, pharmacist and breastfeeding counsellor rush out to buy this book (and they should), Wendy has also written the clearest explanation of the importance of breastmilk that I have ever read...There is an excellent section about common breastfeeding/infant feeding concerns, both real and common myths, including mastitis, thrush, worries about low milk supply, milk intake, Raynaud's syndrome, colic and so on. The importance of good positioning and attachment is referred to time and again, together with their relevance to good milk transfer and how poor position and attachment can lead to a multitude of misdiagnoses which are then unnecessarily medicated. This underlines the real value of this superb book - the combination of a highly experienced breastfeeding counsellor and pharmacist to produce a depth of knowledge and understanding of the subject that I truly have not found anywhere else.' - AIMS


'Wendy combines her wealthy of experience from these areas together in this well laid out, comprehensive and well researched book...For midwives and other health professionals working with breastfeeding women this book represents a valuable and easy to use resource that can clear up some of the confusing milieu and hopefully play a part in supporting women to breastfeed for longer and to meet their breastfeeding goals...and it would be a valuable addition to the reference library of midwives and other health professionals working with breastfeeding women' - Midwifery News