Can I use teeth-whitening strips when breastfeeding?
—Karolina
Good news: yes! (Although I am sure your teeth are already lovely.)
There are a couple of ways we could imagine evaluating this question. One is with population data similar to the type I often discuss in ParentData. Survey data could include information on some child outcome and whether mom used teeth-whitening strips while breastfeeding. The study would compare outcomes for the two groups and try to draw conclusions.
However, before we even get to this type of study, usually it is necessary to consider why there might be some impact of the behavior on children. If there is no basic scientific reason for concern, then there is really no reason to embark on a big research project like this. In this case, the basic science rejects the need for concern.
The active ingredient in tooth whitening is carbamide peroxide. The simplest way to answer the safety question is to look this up in the NIH’s LactMed database. As pointed out there, it is unlikely that this substance used in tooth whitening would be absorbed into the bloodstream. But even if it were, it would break down into urea and hydrogen peroxide, which are both found in human milk normally. The basic conclusion: there is no reason, chemically, to worry about this. Which is part of why we’ll never see a population-type study, and why you shouldn’t worry about it.
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