Breastfeeding and Reglan

Reglan, (Metoclopramide), is a medication that originally was created to ease gastrointestinal pain and nausea. However, many new moms are being told that it now has another use, increasing breast milk when you have a low milk supply. This drug passes into breast milk in humans. Doctors prescribe this drug with great caution because there are many side effects.The American Academy of Pediatrics goes further and says the Reglan use during breastfeeding is a concern, citing potent nervous system effects of the drug. In fact, the manufacturer recommends caution when prescribing this drug to breastfeeding moms. Reglan is known to increase serum prolactin level which helps increase milk production in humans. The presence of the appropriate levels of the hormone prolactin, allows moms to breastfeed and have a good milk production. When a mom has a low prolactin level, her milk supply may be affected. The drug Reglan helps to increase prolactin levels. However, this drug does not work well for all women. Reglan dosage is usually 10-milligram tablet taken 3 to 4 times a day. Please check out Dr. Thomas Hale's website for more information on this drug. An alternative drug may be a Domperidone, which has many fewer side effects because it does not enter the brain tissue in significant amounts (does not pass the blood-brain barrier).The Domperidone (Motilium) is usually used to increase breastmilk. D Although the drug, Reglan, can increase milk supply, there are numerous side effects of taking into consideration. One of them is depression. Reglan can cause mild to severe depression, even thoughts of suicide. In fact, Reglan may make postpartum depression worse. Other side effects include anxiety, diarrhea, sleep problems such as insomnia, jaundice, seizures, body stiffness, breast tenderness, stomach cramps, headaches, changes in a woman's menstrual period or urinating more frequently. Because, Reglan can cause drowsiness, by impairing your coordination, you should not take it if you want to drive a car.More studies need to be done on side effects to the mom as well as her baby. You should not take Reglan if you have bleeding or blockage in your stomach or intestines, epilepsy or seizure disorders, or an adrenal gland tumor. Furthermore, tell your doctor if you have a kidney disease, liver disease, cognitive heart failure, high blood pressure, breast cancer, Parkinson's disease, diabetes or depression.Many drugs interact with Reglan. So, be sure to tell your doctor which ones you are taking before you go on Reglan. After hearing first hand from my patients, who have taken Reglan, I decided to write this blog. One of my patients experienced severe depression and found her mood changing to the point that she didn't want to take care of her baby. She became very irritable and could not handle her baby. She went further on to tell me that she thought she was losing her mind.Then she realized that she just started Reglan. She immediately called her doctor to notify him of what was going on while she was on Reglan. She discontinued the drug. If you ever want to report side effects, you can call 1-800-FDA-1088. After hearing stories like this from numerous moms, I have decided that I as an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant will not recommend this to my moms who ask me. There are other ways to try to increase your milk before you go to this extreme. Ask me and I will tell you how. In conclusion, before using Reglan, breastfeeding moms need to speak to their health care provider and weigh the pros and cons of this drug.If you are using Reglan, you need to be closely monitored by your doctor, using this drug with great caution. I hope after reading this blog, you will consider other options.