Friday April 16, 1999 - Question 14

A nursing mother calls the poison center inquiring about the use of a diet supplement.  She is nursing a 1-month-old infant and wishes to lose weight by taking a product containing ma huang and caffeine, against the advice of her lactation consultant.  After researching the topic, the poison specialist discusses the need for maintaining good caloric intake while breastfeeding (1800 calories per day minimum) and the need to minimize or avoid chemicals, which the infant may not be able to handle, such as ephedra alkaloids or caffeine.

Please list 3 or 4 parameters (e.g., mother / infant specific information or pharmacokinetic information) that would be helpful to consider when responding to questions like the one in the above case.
 
 

Response