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Breastfeeding Mothers Healthy Diet

Just as when you were pregnant, it's important to eat well while you're breastfeeding, with plenty of wholesome fruits, vegetables, whole grains, protein, and calcium-rich foods. Follow the recommendations charted in the revised Food Guide Pyramid and you'll be well on your way to giving both you and your baby a nutritious diet.

You'll also need to drink and eat enough (up to 500 calories more a day) so that your body can make milk. But before you start adding on more calories, talk to your doctor about how many more you should consume every day based on your weight and height.

Researchers have found that a woman's metabolism becomes more efficient during lactation. This may mean that each extra calorie goes further in a breastfeeding mother, safeguarding her own health and assuring she has the energy she needs to produce an adequate milk supply for her baby. Losing too much weight too quickly, though, indicates that mother needs more calories.

Breastfeeding may reduce the baby’s risk of developing diabetes later in life. During breastfeeding, you may need less insulin than you did before you were pregnant.. Insulin is compatible with breastfeeding. If you need to take oral medicine for diabetes, your doctor can prescribe one that can be taken while breastfeeding.

Taking good care of you can go a long way toward promoting successful breast-feeding. Eat healthy foods, drink plenty of fluids and rest as much as possible. To boost your confidence, learn as much as you can about breast-feeding. Keep the environment calm and relaxed.

Successful breastfeeding depends largely on how Mom treats herself. A poor diet, too little sleep, and too much stress can reduce the quality and quantity of your milk supply. Make sure you are getting enough calories:

Milk, Yogurt and Cheese - Eat at least 4 servings
Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs and Nuts - Eat at least 3 servings
Vegetables - Spread your caloric intake over five "meals," breakfast, lunch, after- noon snack, dinner, and an extra snack during the evening. Each snack time is also an opportunity to drink water, eat a low-fat dairy product, and a piece of fruit. As your body is continually producing milk, it needs your caloric intake to be regular.
Fruits - Eat 2 to 4 servings; choose two foods high in Vitamin C and Folic Acid, and one food high in Vitamin A. Eating lots of fruits and vegetables will also help you get all the vitamins and mineral you need. Vitamin D is important to your baby's bone growth. Vitamin D is found in fish, milk, eggs and butter.
Whole-grain and other concentrated complex carbohydrates: three or more servings
Bread, Cereal, Rice and Pasta - Eat about 6 to 11 servings. Use natural sugars rather than chemical sugar substitutes.
Fats, Oils, and Sweets - Go Easy!
When you are breastfeeding twins, consuming 800 to 1000 additional calories is recommended. You should add these extra calories to your normal caloric intake, because your normal caloric intake maintains your own body's functions and weight.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommended that for breastfed healthy term infants, mothers and infants should sleep close to each other to help with breastfeeding.

This is just a general guideline, and you may need to eat more than this based on your size and activity level. Chronically undernourished women who have had diets very low in vitamins and minerals, and low stores in their bodies may produce milk that is lower than normal in some vitamins, especially vitamins A, D, B6, or B12. These breastfeeding mothers can help the vitamin levels in their milk return to normal by improving their diets or by taking vitamin supplements.

A minimal caloric intake of at least 2000 calories per day, with an optimal intake of 500 calories above a non-pregnant caloric intake of 1800 to 2200 calories is recommended. (This is the equivalent of a peanut butter sandwich and a glass of milk.) Foods from the following food categories offer the most nutritional value:

Meats
Beans
Vegetables (especially leafy green vegetables)
Fruits or 100 percent fruit juice (not fruit drinks)
Breads, cereals, and grains
Milk, cheese, and eggs

Some women think that when they are sick, they should not breastfeed. But, most common illnesses, such as colds, flu, or diarrhea, can't be passed through breast milk. In fact, if a mother is sick, her breast milk will have antibodies in it. These antibodies will help protect her baby from getting the same sickness.

Nursing moms need to maintain a well-balanced diet that includes a variety of fresh fruits, vegetables, calcium, prenatal vitamins, and minimal amount of caffeine, to produce enough milk for their babies. Nursing mothers should eat a well-balanced diet, including prenatal vitamins, and avoid the use of alcohol, nicotine, drugs, herbal medications and caffeine.

Mothers who breastfeed should be sure to have enough Calcium in their diet, or may risk bone loss around their teeth and gums, according to a new study that appears in the issue of the Journal of Periodontology (JOP).A woman should continue to take prenatal vitamins in order to meet the nutrient requirements of breast-feeding. Especially important is continued intake of calcium and calcium-rich foods.

Researchers from Tohoku University in Japan investigated if lactation affects alveolar bone loss, the bone surrounding the roots of teeth, in rat models of experimental periodontitis. They found mothers who are lactating could put the bone structures around their teeth at risk, especially when there was not enough Calcium in their diet. The evidence confirmed that breastfeeding can cause increased bone loss in the mother, especially when the mother has insufficient Calcium intake. But additional studies in human populations are necessary to confirm these findings."

Mothers need to be encouraged to drink plenty of fluids. One simple way to ensure this is to drink 8 oz. of water, juice, or milk while they are nursing. They need to eat their routine diet and an estimated extra 500 kcal/day. This will allow mothers enough nutrition to breast feed the baby and to gradually lose weight over six months of breast feeding.

Many experts now recommend that adults have 400 mcg of folic acid daily -- considerably higher than standard recommendations of 400 mcg of folate. Women who are trying to conceive, who are pregnant, and who are breastfeeding should take 400 mcg of folic acid.

Exclusive breastfeeding is defined as an infant receiving only breast milk and no other liquids or solids except for vitamins, minerals or medicines. Compared with formula feeding, exclusive breastfeeding has a stronger protective effect against lower respiratory tract infections, middle ear infection, eczema and childhood obesity, and decreases the risk of type 2 diabetes and ovarian and breast cancer in mothers.

One of the wonders of breast milk is that it can meet your baby's nutritional needs even if you're not eating well. But just because your baby won't be harmed by any dietary insufficiency on your part doesn't mean that you won't suffer. Getting enough vitamins and nutrients is important because you need energy to meet the physical demands of caring for a new baby. Think of nursing as continued motivation to follow the healthy diet you followed during pregnancy. Focus on eating whole grains and cereals, fresh fruits and vegetables, and foods that provide plenty of protein, calcium, and iron. (As always, a treat every now and then is fine.)

Pregnant and breastfeeding women should be sure to include biotin-rich foods in their meals. Given the variety of the World's Healthiest Foods rich in biotin, ensuring adequate intake of this critically important B vitamin can be easy. For example, a bowl of oatmeal or granola for breakfast, an omelet or egg salad sandwich for lunch, a handful of almonds or walnuts for a snack, and a dinner including halibut, a salad of romaine lettuce, cucumber and tomato, and some strawberries or raspberries for dessert would supply more than double the 30 micrograms of biotin per day recommended by the National Academy of Sciences for pregnant and lactating women.

The RDA iron recommendation for women is 15 mg. Iron is best absorbed in an empty stomach, but if you eat citrus fruits or tomatoes an hour or so before iron rich foods, the iron will absorb more efficiently. Mother's consumption of iron does not influence the amount or concentrations of iron in breast milk. High vitamin C foods/beverages along with high iron foods help your body absorb iron easier, so drink a glass of 100% fruit juice with your meal.

The caloric needs of a breast-feeding woman are even higher than during pregnancy. An extra 400 to 500 calories per day above pregnancy requirements are needed. Most women should consume approximately 2,800 calories per day to meet the energy needs of breast-feeding.66 Therefore, under most circumstances; doctors discourage dieting (i.e., calorie restriction). Weight loss following pregnancy usually occurs naturally, particularly if a woman can engage in moderate exercise. Breast-feeding uses up fat stores, and is a natural way to lose weight.

Sometimes breastfeeding babies react to certain foods that their mothers eat. You might notice that after eating spicy or "gassy" foods, your baby cries, fusses, or even nurses more often. Symptoms caused by colic occur daily and often last for days or weeks at a time. If your baby gets symptoms every time you eat a certain type of food, stop eating that particular item. Study found that women on the low allergen diet
excluded dairy products, soy, wheat, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts,
and fish had lesser colic to their babies.

What should be avoided if you are a breastfeeding mother?

Mothers who eat junk food during pregnancy and breastfeeding may be putting their children at risk of overeating and developing obesity, according to a study funded by the Wellcome Trust and carried out at the Royal Veterinary College, London.

The research suggests that pregnant and breastfeeding women should not indulge in fatty, sugary and salty foods under the misguided assumption that they are "eating for two” Bakery products, confectionery and snacks are a major source of trans fatty acids in maternal diet in Poland. The levels of trans fatty acids in human milk may reflect the current diet of the mother as well as the diet consumed early in pregnancy.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is concerned that nursing infants may be at increased risk of morphine overdose if their mothers are taking codeine and are ultra-rapid metabolizers of codeine. Our best advice to physicians prescribing codeine-containing products to nursing mothers is to prescribe the lowest dose needed for the shortest amount of time.

"If you are breastfeeding, you should not take illegal drugs. Some drugs, such as cocaine and PCP, can make the baby high. Our best advice to physicians prescribing codeine-containing products to nursing mothers is to prescribe the lowest dose needed for the shortest amount of time.

Always talk with your doctor before taking any medications. Most medications pass into your milk in small amounts. If you take medication for a chronic condition such as high blood pressure, diabetes or asthma, your medication may already have been studied in breastfeeding women, so you should be able to find information to help you make an informed decision with the help of your doctor.
Do not smoke while you are breastfeeding, or around children at all! Secondhand smoke is dangerous to all children, but especially to newborns. It increases the risk of SIDS.
Beware of pollutants. Like nicotine, pesticide residue easily passes through mother's milk. If you are nursing, stay away from insecticides (especially in airborne forms such as aerosols or coils). Try to use natural insect repellents such as citronella. Eat primarily unsaturated fats. Sunflower, corn, rapeseed, and olive oil provide fatty acids that are essential for building the baby's nervous system.
According to the FDA/EPA guidelines, you should also limit yourself to 12 ounces a week (about two servings) of canned "light" tuna and other cooked fish. And you should completely avoid shark, swordfish, king mackerel, and tilefish (also called golden or white snapper). More conservative experts recommend that you avoid tuna steak (fresh or frozen), orange roughly, Spanish mackerel, marlin, and grouper because these fish are at the top of the food chain and contain the highest levels of mercury.

You may want to hold off on drinking while you're breastfeeding, because alcohol does enter your breast milk and can potentially harm or irritate your baby. Among other risks, drinking as little as one alcoholic beverage can inhibit your body's ability to produce milk.

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