A lot of young babies suffer from at least one bout of mild oral thrush. If you are breastfeeding, this could be a cause for alarm for you, and many women raise many questions about the right thing to do concerning the continuation of breastfeeding and passing the infection from your baby to you. Although it is possible that your baby can pass the infection on to you, it is normally not very severe, and can be cleared up easily.
If your baby has oral thrush and you are breastfeeding, the infection may be passed on to you. This infection will primarily be within your nipples, inducing a case of nipple thrush. This may sound distressing, but like many other strains of thrush, is more often than not a very simple infection that can be easily cleared up relatively quickly.
Although it is possible that your baby can pass on the thrush infection through breastfeeding, this will not happen to every woman who chooses to breastfeed. Like all strains of the thrush infection, some women may be more susceptible to developing the infection than others. This includes women who suffer from diabetes or any conditions that affect the state of the immune system, women who have suffered from thrush before or and particularly vulnerable to reoccurring instances of thrush, and women who are undergoing a course of antibiotics.
It is also noted that if you have suffered from cracked nipples before through the wrong positioning of your baby whilst feeding, you may be more susceptible to receiving the infection. If you do suffer pain in the breasts or from cracked nipples, it may be a good idea to consult your doctor or nurse and gain some advice on the ideal way to position your baby. Breastfeeding can be difficult for many new mothers for a variety of different reasons, and the advice given to you can do wonders in making the breastfeeding experience much more comfortable and potentially infection free.
Some of the signs of your baby having passed on the infection to your nipples and breasts include;
Although these are symptoms that some women will experience if their baby has passed on the thrush infection to their breasts or nipples, it is possible that you do not suffer from any symptoms at all.