“What meds can I use for my back pain?” “Are any laxatives safe?” “Can I use a dandruff
shampoo?” “Can I safely use these herbs?” For the mother of the breastfeeding infant, do you have
ready access to reliable and useful information to guide your responses? Until now, such information
on breastfeeding and non-prescription medications, including herbal medicines, has been
cumbersome to obtain.

Publication of this guide is a breakthrough for parents and clinicians alike. The author, an
experienced pharmacist, has reviewed and summarized the existing information from reliable
sources. With the acknowledged help of several notable lactation consultants, he has constructed
quick, easy-to-read tables with a qualified “yes/no” orientation on over 1400 drugs and herbal
medicines of interest to lactating mothers.

Tables are assembled by helpful categories such as analgesics, nasal preparations, sleep preparations, to name only a few. Each product is labeled with Y (usually safe when breastfeeding) or N (avoid when breastfeeding) and some have an additional cautionary notes (e.g., Y1 (monitor infant for
drowsiness or excitability). Each table also includes Hale’s Lactation Risk categories (L1 to L5, from
safest to contraindicated).

This practical guidebook deserves to be used widely. However, there are two shortcomings. First,
there seems to be no logical order to the tables. For example, the categories of analgesics and
analgesic balms are separated by 50 pages. Thankfully, the table of contents and the thorough index
make the information readily accessible. Second, although the contents include information on 20
herbal galactogogues and 32 herbs/supplements commonly used by women, only one common
name is provided for these herbs. The Latin binomials, the internationally accepted common
language for all plants, have regretfully been left out from this edition. Thus, should “Indian
Snakewood” or “Goat’s Rue” go by a different name, one cannot access the book’s information.
However, for ready access to reliable information, I highly recommend this book.