A new study should provide some peace of mind to nursing moms who have epilepsy.
The researchers found that breastfeeding a baby while taking certain anti-seizure medications doesn't appear to affect the child's mental development.
"Our results showed no difference in IQ scores between children who were breastfed and those who were not," said one of the study authors, Kimford Meador of Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta.
The study, published in the journal Neurology, is based on 194 women who were taking one of the following drugs: carbamazepine, lamotrigine, phenytoin and valproate. Out of 199 babies, 42 were breastfed. The children were given IQ tests at age 3. Dr. Meador said more study is needed on the effects of other epilepsy drugs.