Is Hydrochlorothiazide safe while breastfeeding?
Here is what LactMed, the Drugs and Lactation Database published by the U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), reports about Hydrochlorothiazide. The text below is quoted from that source — it is not our own verdict.
Summary of use during breastfeeding
Hydrochlorothiazide doses of 50 mg daily or less are acceptable during lactation. Intense diuresis with large doses may decrease breastmilk production.
Effects on the breastfed infant
No electrolyte abnormalities were noted in one 28-day-old infant who was breastfed since birth while his mother was taking oral hydrochlorothiazide 50 mg daily.[1]
Effects on milk supply
Hydrochlorothiazide in dosages of 100 mg daily in the morning and 50 mg in the afternoon or 50 mg twice daily have been used to successfully to suppress lactation at various times postpartum.[2,3] Intense diuresis with thiazides and thiazide-like diuretics, fluid restriction and breast binding have been used to suppress postpartum lactation.[2,4,5] The added contribution of the diuretic to these measures, which are effective in suppressing lactation, has not been studied. There are no data on the effects of diuretics on established, ongoing lactation.
In a pilot study of the treatment of patients with postpartum hypertension, patients were randomized to either 12.5 mg hydrochlorothiazide plus 10 mg of lisinopril (n = 31) or 30 mg of nifedipine (n = 36) daily. The dosages could be increased to 12.5 mg hydrochlorothiazide plus 20 mg of lisinopril and then to 25 mg hydrochlorothiazide with 20 mg lisinopril. Nifedipine dosage was increased in 30 mg increments to a maximum daily dose of 120 mg daily. At discharge, 21 hydrochlorothiazide-lisinopril mothers (70%) were breastfeeding while19 nifedipine mothers (53%) were breastfeeding.[6]
Levels in milk
Maternal Levels. In a mother who was 28 days postpartum, hydrochlorothiazide reached a peak milk level of about 275 mcg/L at about 3 hours after a 50 mg oral dose. The infant received a daily dosage of about 2% of the mother's weight-adjusted dose.[1]
Infant Levels. Hydrochlorothiazide was not detectable (<20 mcg/L) in the serum of a 28-day-old breastfed infant at about 2 and 11 hours after the mother's dose.[1]
Alternatives LactMed lists
Source: Drugs and Lactation Database (LactMed), National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), via NCBI Bookshelf, record “Hydrochlorothiazide” (LM137). LactMed on NCBI Bookshelf. LactMed is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Educational summary of an authoritative source — not medical advice. Never start, stop, or change a medicine while breastfeeding without confirming with your doctor.