My doctor recommended that I take singulair since zyrtec is no longer working for me. I'm nursing a 6 month old and I am concerned that it will affect my milk supply. Has anyone taken Singulair while nursing and seen any affect on milk supply?
Thank you ladies!! My doctor who prescribed it said it was safe to take while nursing. I contacted a nursing group and they said that there is no information on it. Luckily, a nursing mom who is a doctor attends that group. I spoke with her and she said that there is no harm to the baby since he is 6 months old. The question still remains if it could dry up my supply. The doctor did not know. I've read some forums of breastfeeding moms taking it with no affect on milk supply. I may have to start taking it. I will report what happens. Thanks again!
Milk supply impact is unknown. Singulair (montelukast) has not been tested on breastfeeding women. I hope you get some anecdotal replies.
As far as baby safety, it has been tested in pregnancy and classified as Category B, and can be prescribed for infants as young as 6 months, so it's considered fine for breastfeeding mothers after their babies are that old.
It's not an antihistamine so it doesn't have the risk of drying up supply like benadryl or zyrtec. As for other effects, there is a researcher named Thomas Hales who has done a ton of research on meds and breastfeeding. His website is infantrisk.com (or something similar). You may be able to look it up there.
Call a lactation center and have them look it up in their big book of medications. A partial list may also be on kellymom.com. Of note is that you're 6 months in, and your supply should be pretty well established.
Talk to a pharmacist. They may be able to tell you.
What does your doctor say?
Bake some lactation cookies to offset it, they are delicious too!!
My favorite website to check meds while breastfeeding is Lactmed by the US National Library of Medicine. There is also an iphone app that I have on my phone.
I looked up Singulair and it didn't say anything that indicated it would cause issues. But, it didn't say a lot in general.
I had to try a few different allergy meds while nursing my third. A couple of them always seemed to give her a diaper rash. I finally ended up on Claritin which works for me and didn't bother her. She no longer nurses but I continue to take it because it's working.
what did the doctor say about it?
i don't 100% trust most doctors. an awful lot of them are either getting kickbacks from prescribing meds, or simply don't have time to keep up on all the latest literature. but geez, i HOPE that if he's recommending this particular med that he's read up on it.
i myself take a 'as little as possible' approach to meds while pregnant or breastfeeding, and i don't feel safe if the only answer is 'impact unknown.' but there are certainly conditions that won't allow for a mother to go unmedicated. i think your best bet is to contact a lactation specialist.
khairete
S.
