These drinks don't mix

Fort Worth Star-Telegram: From the Products We Never Thought We'd See Department comes Milkscreen, a "simple two-minute test for the detection of the presence of alcohol in breast milk." No, really.
No matter that the American Academy of Pediatrics' Committee on Drugs says that breastfeeding and alcohol use are incompatible.
In fact, the AAP's Web site offers this advice on its page dedicated to educating new mothers on how to get started: "Do not smoke, drink alcohol or use illegal drugs. These all contain substances that can interfere with let-down and affect the content of breast milk. They are not good for you and not good for your baby."
What part of that is confusing? (Well, maybe the term let-down, which refers to when a mother's milk begins to flow.)
Sure, there are old wives' tales that a beer for Mom means more milk for the baby, but studies show that isn't really the case.
Stop snickering!
And the La Leche League, the pro-breastfeeding folks, report that for a 120-pound woman -- stop snickering, you new mothers! -- it takes two to three hours for the alcohol in one serving of beer or wine to be eliminated from her body and, therefore, her milk. For a high-alcohol content drink, such as a martini, it can take as long as 13 hours.
Not many babies make it that long between feedings, and very few young babies go as long as three hours between meal times.
Perhaps the makers of Milkscreen think they're encouraging responsible drinking while nursing. But the AAP makes it clear: There is no responsible drinking while nursing.
Study after study shows that breastfeeding is one of the best choices that a mother can make for her child's future health -- and for her own. It means fewer illnesses for the child and a reduced risk of breast and ovarian cancer for the mother.