Is Black Seed safe while breastfeeding?
Here is what NIH LactMed, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's authority on medicines and breastfeeding, reports about Black Seed. This is a summary of that source — not our own verdict.
Effects on the breastfed infant
Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
Effects on milk supply
One hundred fifty-eight mothers in Iran of who reported difficulty in breastfeeding were given either a proprietary mixture of herbs (Shirafza Drop) or a chlorophyll solution as a placebo. The herbal mixture contained the purported galactogogues fennel, anise, cumin, black seed, and parsley. Infant ages ranged between 0 and 6 months and they were exclusively breastfed. Weight gain of the infants was measured over time. No difference in infant weight gain was seen between the two groups of infants.[ 12 ] Blinding and randomization in this study is unclear. A single-blinded study was performed on mothers having baby of 1 month of age or less with complaints of insufficient breast milk secretion and poor anthropometric measures of her child (weight, height, head circumference). Mothers were randomly assigned to receive either 1 gram of ground Nigella sativa seeds (n = 50) or 1 gram of a cellulose placebo (n = 50) twice daily for 28 days. Serum prolactin increased from 75 to 192 (units not specified) in the Nigella group which was slightly greater than in the control group. Babies in both groups gained weight, length and head circumference, but no difference was seen between the two groups. There were also no changes in maternal serum hemoglobin, creatinine, AST and ALT levels or differences between the groups.[ 9 ]
Levels in milk
Maternal Levels. Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date. Infant Levels. Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
Source: NIH LactMed (National Library of Medicine).
Educational summary of an authoritative source — not medical advice. Never start, stop, or change a medicine while breastfeeding without confirming with your doctor.