Nursing mothers who need to take an antibiotic because of an infection should not avoid it for fear of harming their baby. An untreated infection not only harms the mother, but may also harm the baby. Typically, the baby gets less than 1% of the therapeutic dose of antibiotics that the breastfeeding mother takes. To date, there are no validated side effects. Only the baby’s stools may become mushier or thinner. Consequently, it is not necessary to stop breastfeeding.
Penicillin is the antibiotic of choice during breastfeeding. If there is intolerance to penicillin, erythromycin, an antibiotic from the class of macrolide antibiotics (macrolides), is often used.
Cephalosporin is also a preferred antibiotic during breastfeeding.
The following antibiotic agents should be avoided in therapy:
- Quinolones
- Clindamycin
- Erythromycin (administered intravenously)
- Ethambutol
- Isoniazid (administered intravenously)
- Tetracycline
