Caffeine While Breastfeeding
The dose isn't the problem — the timing is. Caffeine peaks in breast milk 1–2 hours after a cup and falls from about 3 hours. Pick your drink and the time you had it; the window below shows when to feed and when to wait.
Your timing plan
Common questions
How long after coffee is it safe to breastfeed?
Caffeine in breast milk peaks about 1–2 hours after the cup. Nursing right before the coffee, or more than ~3 hours after it, keeps the baby's dose lowest. You don't need to 'pump and dump' for a normal cup — timing the feed is the practical lever.
How much caffeine can I have while breastfeeding?
Most guidance allows 200–300 mg/day while nursing (the Australian Breastfeeding Association says 200 mg; LactMed notes 300–500 mg is likely fine for most mothers). About 1% of your dose reaches the milk — newborns and preterm babies clear caffeine very slowly, so stay at the low end early on.
Method & sources
Pharmacokinetics from NIH's LactMed: milk caffeine peaks ~60 min (range 1–2 h) after a maternal dose; roughly 1% of the maternal dose transfers. Infant elimination is the bottleneck — caffeine's half-life is ~80–100 h in newborns, falling toward adult values within months. Daily limits: ABA ~200 mg; LactMed calls 300–500 mg "likely safe" for most. This page times feeds; it doesn't diagnose anything, and a fussy, sleepless baby is worth a real conversation with your pediatrician.
Counting a daily total? Pregnancy caffeine calculator · Alcohol instead? Alcohol while breastfeeding · When to stop, by drink