What are the effects of using cannabis and breastfeeding? How does this affect the child?
The main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis, THC (tetrahydro-cannabinol), is fat-soluble and does enter breast milk and the baby – often, due to the size of the infant, in higher blood concentrations than the mother. However, there is no firm evidence that cannabis or THC can stunt, impair or damage a baby or their growth. One report (which is cited in several web pages on this subject) has stated that THC might delay infant motor development but we have been unable to track down and read the original study. Information on this subject is often tainted by the general assumption that ‘illegal drugs are bad for you’ when in fact alcohol and Prozac (fluoxetine) have more worrying question marks over their effects during breastfeeding.
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