Can a Postpartum Woman Eat Dairy Less Than Six Hours After Meat?

The Talmud (Chullin 105a) states that one must wait “from one meal to the next” between eating meat and milk. The early authorities (Rishonim) differed as to the exact amount of time this phrase implies.

The Shulchan Aruch (Yoreh De’ah 89:1), following Maimonides (Rambam), rules that one must wait approximately six hours — the interval between the morning and evening meals. However, the Rema (Rabbi Moshe Isserles) rules that, strictly speaking, waiting one hour suffices, though it is praiseworthy to be stringent and wait six hours.

Leniency for a Postpartum Woman or Mildly Ill Person

For those of Ashkenazi custom (who follow the Rema): If the person is mildly ill or weak — such as a woman after childbirth (within 30 days), she may rely on the lenient opinion and eat dairy foods one hour after finishing a meat meal, provided that:

• She thoroughly cleans her teeth from any meat residue.

• She rinses her mouth with water.

• She eats a neutral food (e.g., bread or another pareve item).

• She recites Birkat HaMazon (Grace After Meals).

For Sephardim, who follow the Shulchan Aruch and normally wait six hours, the halacha is stricter. However, the Zivchei Tzedek and Ben Ish Chai write that even Sephardim may be lenient for one who is slightly ill or a woman recovering from childbirth, allowing her to eat dairy after one hour, following the Rema’s opinion, when needed for her health.

Ruling of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef

Rabbi Ovadia Yosef writes in Yabia Omer (vol. 1, Yoreh De’ah) that a postpartum woman within 30 days, as well as a person who is ill but not in danger, may rely on the lenient view of waiting one hour between meat and dairy, particularly when it benefits their strength and recovery.

Children

Many later authorities consider young children to have the same status as a choleh she’ein bo sakana (a mildly ill person). As children today often have weaker constitutions and find it difficult to wait six hours, one may allow them to eat dairy after one hour, especially when the food is nutritionally important (e.g., milk, cheese, yogurt) — but not sweets or desserts containing dairy.