Review & Giveaway: MilkScreen

Are you a nursing mother who sometimes feels like enjoying an adult beverage but worries about how long the alcohol actually stays in your system and can be passed on to baby through your breast milk? UpSpringBaby has come up with a solution. A test kit, called Milkscreen, that can detect the level of alcohol in your breast milk and help you determine wether or not it is safe to resume breastfeeding. Each person is unique in the way their body processes and metabolizes alcohol and it can be influenced by the amount of alcohol consumed, your body weight and food intake among other things.

I was given the opportunity to test Milkscreen and I can tell you first hand that it works.  To test, you just need a few drops of your breast milk for the little test strips.  After only two minutes, the test will determine if it is safe for you to resume breastfeeding by the color the test strip turns.  It comes with a chart to help you read the results.  Milkscreen determines alcohol in the milk with levels of 0.02% or higher.  Studies have shown that infants consuming breast milk with alcohol concentrations at approximately 0.03%, and higher have exhibited distinctive changes in:

• Feeding behavior: baby consumes less if the milk contains alcohol.
• Sleeping: baby sleeps less and wakes more frequently.

The milkscreen™ test is set to show a color change at .02% to let Mom know if her milk contains a level of alcohol that may negatively impact baby.

I think this product is great because it allows me to feel like an “adult” while still being a responsible and safe mommy.  It allows me to get back to nursing as soon as it is safe rather than just guessing and probably wasting more than necessary of my valuable pumped milk supply.

Many of you may have heard of the term “pump and dump” in reference to drinking and breast feeding.  The only reason to pump and dump is to keep up your milk supply or relieve engorgement.  Pumping does not rid your body or breast milk of alcohol.  If it is still in your blood stream, it is still in your milk and not safe to feed to baby.

Milkscreen is pediatrician and lactation consultant recommended.  It is quick and easy to use and the results are reliable.

Milkscreen is available in a 3 pack ($4.99), 8 pack ($9.99) or 20 pack ($19.99) at amazon.com, babiesrus.com and more.

Enter to win a box of Milkscreen by filling out the form below: