Herpes virus in breast milk

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Email alerts Article Activity Alert. Newest Articles Alert. News Latest News Archive. Close Modal. If you can pump milk from the infected breast without letting your hands or any pump parts touch the sore, you can use the pumped milk to feed your baby.

Otherwise, you must discard it. You may need to supplement your breast milk with formula or donor milk during these times. You can continue to nurse from the unaffected breast. Your healthcare provider may prescribe antiviral medications such as acyclovir or vidarabine which is sold in eyedrop form to fight the herpes infection and help prevent future outbreaks. These drugs are generally considered safe during breastfeeding, but consult with your baby's doctor about taking them while nursing.

Or check Lactmed, the drugs and lactation database of the National Institutes of Health. BabyCenter's editorial team is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. When creating and updating content, we rely on credible sources: respected health organizations, professional groups of doctors and other experts, and published studies in peer-reviewed journals.

We believe you should always know the source of the information you're seeing. Learn more about our editorial and medical review policies. La Leche League International. What about herpes and breastfeeding? Genital herpes: Can I breastfeed if I have genital herpes? Riordan J.

Breastfeeding and Human Lactation 3rd ed. Join now to personalize. Condition The potential problem Can I breastfeed?

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Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Department of Health and Human Services. Update issued May 21,