Marijuana and Breastfeeding

Marijuana and Breast Milk

If a woman is nursing and using marijuana, she’s infusing marijuana right into her breast milk and into her baby. Research has shown that if a woman uses marijuana during her baby’s first month of breastfeeding, it can impair her baby’s motor development. That means the marijuana can retard the baby’s ability to move and learn for its entire life.

From the standpoint of Traditional Chinese Medicine, taking marijuana is not something that a caring and responsible mother would want to do. The reason for this is that nearly everything that irritates and annoys a baby, and therefore the mother, comes from heat.

Marijuana can Irritate the Baby

Marijuana is energetically warm to hot, spicy and slightly poisonous. A woman doesn’t want to take marijuana while she’s breastfeeding for the same reasons she doesn’t want to eat spicy foods at that time. It can irritate the baby.

Marijuana can Congest Milk Production

Marijuana enters the stomach channels. The milk-producing ability of the breasts is nourished and regulated by the stomach channels. Marijuana’s hot, drying nature can goes against the flow of healthy and smooth milk production.

Marijuana Can Confuse the Baby’s Digestion

The baby is also learning how to digest at this time. Any confusion in its stomach channels, especially of a hot nature, can lead to digestive issues, colic and a very uncomfortable baby.

Marijuana Can Harm the Sleep the Mother and Her Baby Get

Marijuana enters the heart channels. The heart channels help to govern the sleep that the mother and her baby get. Any extra heat in the mother’s heart channels or her baby’s at this time is a perfect recipe for losing sleep.

Marijuana Can Harm the Baby’s Growth and Keep the Mother From Regenerating

Marijuana enters the kidney channels. The kidney channels are responsible for long-term cycles of growth and development in the child. Stimulating them at this time can push the baby’s development before its ready to move ahead, or, if the marijuana depletes the baby’s kidney energy, it could impair its growth as well.

Marijuana’s Not Good For the Mother or the Baby

In essence, if a woman is pregnant or has recently given birth and is still breastfeeding, there’s no question that marijuana affects the development of her baby in negative ways. It can also keep her from recuperating her health when she most needs it.

There’s no way that I know of or would recommend using that can balance a mother’s marijuana use at this time. Please counsel your patients not to do it.

For complete and detailed explanations of these issues and their treatments, please refer to

Marijuana Syndromes
How to Balance and Optimize
the Effects of Cannabis
With Traditional Chinese Medicine

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