GENERAL~BREASTFEEDING/PTU

December 17, 2002

I am on 100mg of PTU a day & still breastfeeding. My endo put me on this

dose BECAUSE I am breastfeeding,but OB/GYN told me I need to quit,which I

want to quit anyway,but not baby Jace,He LOVES nursing, And has a stubborn

nature(he ain't redheaded for nothing:)...anyway,I was up allllll night last

night with a screaming baby & double Z breasts... I am too tired and

stressed out right now to do that tonight....OB said I could get preg on

this dose so seems like it wouldnt hurt to nurse,but was wondering what you

all thought...should I quit the PTU or take it while nursing baby? Thanks

again,Jen

December 17, 2002

Hi Jen, I can sympathize with you on weaning... it was this time last year I

was sitting at the computer late at night with ice packs on my chest trying

to figure out what the heck to do... it's not fun

Jace will figure it out soon that there is no milk to be had (my only advice

here is to do everything you can to completely tire him out so he is too

tired to cry all night long and maybe even too tired and busy to realized he

s not getting his nursing time), but if YOU are not ready to wean, you

should contact your local breastfeeding support group or la leache (the

hospital might have some names and or numbers to call), etc, and ask them

what they have to say about it, they have lists of drugs that are acceptable

and some that aren't and they sometimes know better than the doc - or maybe

better said, they have more current info.

Good luck,

Pam B.

December 18, 2002

Hi Jen. Been there done that too - I had to wean my baby, in my case

before starting Tap. My baby was fine. I just want to let you know that

YOU may not be - not just the physical discomfort but any emotional

distress due to feeling forced to wean and thoroughly wacky hormones. It

very well may NOT happen to you but then it again it might, so be very

nice to yourself for a while. You have good memories and the knowledge

that you were able to contribute to your baby's overall health in such a

tangible way. If you have access to the La Leche Handbook read up on what

they call " Other Mothering " - make sure you still get lots of cuddle

time.

Take care, Fay

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December 18, 2002

Jen,

I went through this same ordeal.

Two things: first, my children go to a pediatric hospital's clinic in a major

metro area. I have every reason to believe that the doctors here are incredibly

well informed. My daughter's pediatrician actually spent a few days researching

the issue and here were her recommendations.

She felt it was all right for me to stay on PTU and breastfeed (Scarlett was

nine months old). But since PTU goes into breastmilk in trace amounts, she

recommended that Scarlett get her thyroid levels checked every two months. But

she believed PTU to be safe for Scarlett.

However, I felt otherwise. PTU is classified as a " probable carcinogen " by teh

US Department of Health and Human Services. In clincial studies, the drug

caused cancer in lab rats and four out of 350 people on PTU developed thyroid

cancer. To put this in perspective, estrogen is in the same category. My

conclusion regarding both PTU and estrogen is that too much of a beneficial

substance CAN be harmful to SOME (not all) people.

That said, I was uncomfortable with a 'probably carcinogen' while nursing. From

what I could see, there are NO studies on long term health of babies whose

mothers were on PTU while pregnant and/or nursing.

So I was leaning toward weaning anyway when . . .

I developed a serious reaction to PTU and was faced with surgery for my thyroid.

IN the meantime, several women from the NGDF had contacted me to tell me that

their thyriod levels returned to normal after they weaned nursing babies. I

decided to give this a shot.

Within the same week, I weaned scarlett (then one year), went on a macrobiotic

diet and started acupuncture and homeopathy. I sort of felt like I had nothing

to lose --except money, ha--because I was NOT going to have RAI, could no longer

take ATDs, and did not want to have surgery. I went into remission within three

month; within six weeks, my levels were almost normal.

I do think weaning was a major factor for me, as I was pregnant and/or nursing

for four years without a break.

So, more info to chew over!!! Please feel free to contact me privately if you

wish. Please, for all pregnant and nursing moms, don't take this as an

indictment of PTU or a reason to abandon ship. Every drug has its risks. We

simply do NOT know what the risks of PTU to fetuses and breastfed babies are

longterm -- unless someone else has studies on this that I " m unaware of.

B

ps: that all said, I am pregnant again and if I had become hyperthyroid and

COULD tolerate it, I would try PTU over other things. I do think the benefits

generally outweigh the risks. I just wish those of us who advocate ATDs would be

more clear about PTU's dicey 'probable carcinogen " categorization when

discussing its use during pregnancy and lactation.