What Breastfeeding Diet is Best for My Baby and I?
It takes nine months for babies to grow inside their mothers. During this time of pregnancy, you pay careful attention to what you eat and drink as you know there is the potential to affect your unborn baby. When you are breastfeeding, what you eat continues to be an important consideration.
Although a breastfeeding diet is somewhat less restrictive than when you were pregnant, you still want to pay attention to what you eat and drink. This ensures that your baby gets only the best-quality breastmilk that your body can produce.
So, not only will you be producing milk that is high in nutritional content for your baby, you will also be eating foods that are healthier for you. At such a busy time, you need to have all the extra energy you can have as you care for your child. Also, if you can choose low-fat, nutrient-dense meals, you may find it easier to shed some of the weight you gained over the last nine months.
A breastfeeding diet is actually fairly simple. Just as when you are and are not pregnant, you want to eat foods from the meat, fruits and vegetables, grains, and milk food groups. Make sure that the grains are whole grain, and that you eat meat products that are higher in protein and iron. If you are vegetarian or vegan, there are appropriate food substitutes to get the necessary requirements. And because you will be moving less and might even feel like you are attached to the sofa in your home as you nurse, you will want to ensure adequate fiber intake.
As you enjoy healthy foods from all four of the food groups, you will want to consider having a daily vitamin that is appropriate for breastfeeding moms. Unfortunately, the food that we buy in the grocery stores is no longer as nutrient-rich as years ago when people grew their own foods. Because even if you are missing vitamins and/or minerals in your diet, your body will steal from itself to produce the best milk possible for your baby.
When it comes to breastfeeding diets, you have no doubt heard that you should avoid certain foods that can make your baby fussy or gassy. However, no two babies are alike and so what bothers one baby is not necessarily going to bother the next one. Some babies do not even seem to be bothered by foods their mothers eat. Some, but not all, suspicious foods to monitor your baby’s responses to are onions, garlic, cabbage, and broccoli. These foods can alter the taste of the breastmilk resulting in rejection by your baby.
As when you were pregnant, you will still want to avoid eating fishes that are high in mercury. Some of the types to avoid are king mackerel, swordfish, tuna steaks, shark, marlin, and Spanish mackerel. Because fish are high in omega 3 fatty acids which positively impact on your baby’s brain and eye development, better choices of fish that are lower in mercury include rainbow trout and salmon.
The final thing I want to discuss, when it comes to a breastfeeding diet, is alcohol. If at all possible, it should be avoided as it is a known neurotoxin and sedative. And if you drink everyday, then you should not be nursing as problems have been identified in children whose mothers drank every day during breastfeeding. However, if you just want to have a drink once in a while, then you need to plan ahead to make it as safe for your baby as possible. Consider pumping a few days in advance of when you will be going out so that your baby can have that milk instead. Otherwise, nurse your baby right before you have a drink. Then when you have that drink, it will give your body some time to break down the alcohol before you need to nurse again (or perhaps do not nurse at all for several hours and just pump for comfort and throw away the milk).
As you can see, a breastfeeding diet is not overly complex or difficult. It is also not quite as demanding as a pregnancy diet. Following a diet though, will provide the two of you with benefits for years to come.