breastfeeding after surgery

Question
I plan to have a sleeve surgery and I am now 8 months after birth. I am still breastfeeding and planning to continue for a long time (I breastfed my elder son for 3 years..).
can I go on breastfeeding after the surgery? I am mainly concerned about toxins that might be in the milk due to drastic loss of weight.
the surgery will probably be few months from now and my baby is already eating a variety of foods, so I am not really concerned about loss of milk or lesser amounts of it..
thank you very much!

Answer
Dana,
This is a really interesting question.  The first part of my answer is not directly pertinent to your question, but I think it is fair to suggest that in the early post-operative period you should not breastfeed because you will receive many different drugs in relation to anesthesia and recovery.  You may want to talk to your surgeon about what meds you will go home on, and talk to a pediatrician with that info in hand, to check on those meds and which will or will not show up in breast milk.

As for weight loss effects on the composition of your breast milk, I am not aware of any data that addresses this question.  I wish I could give you a solid answer one way or another but here too I think a breastfeeding expert (your pediatrician?) will be better placed to address your question.

Best of luck,
Dr JP

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