Q & A

Many people who read my blog have been sending in questions. I figured this was the perfect outlet to begin answering any questions you may have. If you would like a topic covered, you can either message me on the Facebook group, "Epilepsy and Pregnancy" (it's a closed group, so you'll have to join) or by leaving comments on one of my posts. I promise to get to them as they come in.

Disclaimer: I am NOT a doctor and have no medical background. This is just my findings on each subject. Before making any decisions regarding your health or your child's, please consult with your neurologist and physician.

Question: What effect does anti-epileptics have on a baby while breastfeeding?

Answer: This is a great question. I have researched long and hard about this over the years because it's a constant worry of mine. The consensus from doctors seems to be that it depends on the drug, the dosage and the doctor's beliefs. Many of the findings from the studies done by the National Library of Medicine and National Institute of Health were inconclusive because the mothers in their studies stopped breastfeeding early and they couldn't gather enough information.

Information on initiation and duration of breastfeeding while on anti-epileptics can be found here.

The Epilepsy Therapy Project released their findings of children who had been breastfed by women on anti-epileptics and effect on the child's IQ in November 2010. It was believed that the anti-epileptics could decrease the child's IQ if they were exposed to it for an extended period of time. However, they concluded that there was no difference in IQ between children that were exposed to the drugs during breastfeeding.

You can find more information at the Epilepsy Therapy Project website here.

The last link I will post is this one, which says that there are no immediate cognitive effects in children who were breastfed by women taking anti-epileptics, but it does admit, however, that more research needs to be done in regards to women who are on polytherapy for epilepsy.

Many women have been known to just use formula out of fear that breastfeeding will affect their child. I believe it is a personal decision that you have to make with an open discussion of your doctor. While the effects aren't as great of a risk as many have been led to believe, each case is different.