Caffeine And The Nursing Mom

Does the caffeine I eat or drink get into my breast milk? Could it harm my baby?
Caffeine does enter your bloodstream, and some portion of what you eat or drink shows up in your breast milk. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, if you consume more than 300 milligrams of caffeine a day (what you may get from one strongly brewed 8-ounce cup of coffee), it might affect your baby. That's why it's probably best to restrict your intake while breastfeeding.

Although one or two cups of moderately caffeinated coffee, tea, or soda aren't likely to affect either of you, more might make one or both of you irritable, jittery, agitated, and sleepless. If you want to have a cup or two of coffee or tea a day while nursing, keep in mind that the caffeine in your milk will peak about an hour after you ingest it. And make a conscious effort to drink at least eight glasses of water every day as well because caffeine can make you dehydrated, which is not good for your breast milk supply.

If the caffeine seems to bother your baby, you may want to cut it out of your diet until after you've stopped breastfeeding. Your baby's body processes caffeine more slowly than yours does, so it could be a few days before the caffeine is completely out of his system.

How much caffeine is in my favorite foods and beverages?
Caffeine is in all the usual suspects (coffee, tea, and cola) as well as in chocolate, other soft drinks (including some orange sodas and root beers), and "energy" drinks. Believe it or not, there's usually even some caffeine in decaffeinated beverages. It's also in some over-the-counter drugs, including some headache, cold, and allergy remedies. The amount of caffeine in coffee and tea varies widely, depending on whether they're brewed or instant, weak or strong. Check the chart below for caffeine amounts in some common foods and beverages.

Item	Amount	Caffeine
Brewed coffee, drip method	8 ounces	100-300 mg
Brewed coffee, percolated	8 ounces	65-275 mg
Instant coffee	8 ounces	50-190 mg
Espresso	2 ounces	40-70 mg
Cappuccino	2 ounces	40-70 mg
Decaffeinated coffee	8 ounces	1-8 mg
Brewed tea	8 ounces	35-175 mg
Green tea	8 ounces	8-30 mg
Instant tea	8 ounces	40-80 mg
Iced tea	12 ounces	65-75 mg
Coffee ice cream or frozen yogurt	1 cup	8-85 mg
Soft drinks	a 12-ounce can	30-60 mg
Hot cocoa	8 ounces	3-30 mg
Chocolate milk	8 ounces	2-7 mg
Milk chocolate	1 ounce	1-15 mg
Dark or semisweet chocolate	1 ounce	5-35 mg
Baker's chocolate	1 ounce	26 mg
Chocolate syrup	1 ounce	4 mg

source from http://www.babycenter.com