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Every mother must have heard that breast milk is the best food for the baby. But what some of them may not know is what the breastfeeding diet is like and how what it eats can affect the baby .
Certain nutrient-filled foods can help maintain the body and milk production sufficiently and healthily, while other foods can reduce milk production and affect the baby’s digestive system.
How many calories to eat when breastfeeding?
First of all, the good news is that producing milk means burning about 500 calories a day if you are exclusively breastfeeding . This is equivalent to running about 8 kilometers in a good workout, except that the mother can do it in the comfort of her chair while snuggling with the baby.
In general, you need to eat about 500 more calories a day to make up for what you burn during breastfeeding, but the best diet for breastfeeding mothers doesn’t just require more calories. Because you have to share all the vitamins and minerals you eat with your baby, maximizing nutrition is the right thing to do.
Breastfeeding Feeding
There are some nutritional suggestions that can be added to the diet for those who breastfeed. Are they:
Protein
The amount of protein that needs to be included in the diet for those who breastfeed depends on body weight . Usually 15 grams more protein is needed. To find out the exact amount, just make this count: take your weight, debt for 2 and add 15.
This is the amount of grams of protein you should consume per day. Or a simpler strategy, is just to include a few proteins in each meal or snack.
In addition to birds and fish, which have 26 g and 17 g of protein per 100 grams, respectively. Other sources of good protein include lentils (9 g per half cup), milk (8 g per cup), peanut butter (7 g per 2 tablespoons) and eggs (6 g per hard-boiled egg).
Carbohydrates
Breastfeeding is not the right time to cut carbohydrates , especially if sleep time is reduced. Energy and hormone levels are continually expended, and securing some carbohydrates for the body to work on will make you feel more willing.
Feeding breastfeeders requires about 210 grams per day, or about 60% more than before becoming pregnant. So make sure your breastfeeding diet includes some kind of healthy carbohydrate, it can be a fruit (a banana is 31 gr), whole grains (brown rice is 45 gr per half cup, cooked), vegetables (a potato cooked sweet has 27 gr).
And, as you probably already know, avoid white carbohydrates and use healthy carbohydrates with a lack of fiber, which will keep you healthier.
Folic acid
It is already known how important folic acid is during pregnancy, but it is also very important in feeding for those who breastfeed. The baby is still developing, so this supplement is still indispensable.
Breastfeeding mothers should consume 500 micrograms per day . A great source of folic acid are green foods like spinach (100 mcg per half cup, cooked) and kale (about 19 mcg per half cup, raw).
It’s kind of a cliché, but these vegetables are good for almost anything. It is also possible to find in breads and fortified pasta, as well as oranges and sesame seeds.
Omega 3 fatty acid
Often we immediately think of fish for omega 3, which are important for the development of the baby’s brain, but they are hardly the only source.
These healthy fats can be found in cattle fed with grass (80 mg per 100 grams) and oils enriched with omega 3 (225 mg each), as well as nuts and chia seeds.
Calcium
In feeding for those who breastfeed, it is not necessary to increase the amount of calcium, but it is important that the amount of 1,000 mg per day is maintained. It is normal to lose about 3 to 5 percent of lean mass during breastfeeding (don’t worry, it comes back after weaning), but you need to make sure that your bones are getting the right amount of this nutrient.
Fortunately, unlike the baby, there are many options for the mother to choose from than milk. Tofu (434 mg per half cup), canned salmon (212 mg per serving) and broccoli (70 mg per serving) in the breastfeeding diet.
Ferro
Most women do not need extra iron while breastfeeding, but if you have lost blood during childbirth or afterwards, you may need it. Checking with your doctor the ideal daily amount is important.
Red meat is the easiest way to supply the body’s iron levels, but vegans and vegetarians also have options. Fortified cereal (20 mg per half cup), beans (2 mg per half cup) and dark leafy greens (3 mg per half cup of spinach) will help you get the iron you need with or without meat in the diet for anyone breastfeed.
Best Foods to Eat While Breastfeeding
Knowing which nutrients should be worked in the diet for breastfeeding is important to know which are the best foods for this phase
Oats – It can really help to increase the milk supply. In addition, it is rich in fiber and iron and helps to ward off anemia (which can decrease your milk supply). If the mother is on a diet while breastfeeding, oatmeal is an excellent choice, as it will keep her full after breakfast.
Almonds – For women who are not allergic, almonds are a fantastic combination in the diet for those who breastfeed, since it is rich in protein and calcium. Do you want another food that is rich in both? The Yogurt.
Salmon – With regard to fish, salmon is one of the best foods to add to the diet for those who breastfeed. It is a great source of protein and DHA, a type of omega 3 fatty acid that helps support the baby’s nervous system.
Beans – They are rich in fiber, black, carioca and other beans can be good for the digestive system and are fantastic sources of iron and proteins. It is true that they can give a little gas to those who eat, but it does not interfere with breast milk, so the baby will have no gas.
Spinach, broccoli and kale – And just about any dark green leaf. All of them are rich in nutrients up to calcium, great for vegan mothers and for those who are dieting while breastfeeding, as they are low in calories.
What Foods to Avoid or Limit While Breastfeeding
Some foods should be avoided or reduced in the diet for those who breastfeed, as, as we know, some components of maternal nutrition can pass through the milk and cause some type of disturbance in the baby’s body.
Alcohol – Although they say it is safe to breastfeed after having a drink, keep in mind that alcohol gets into breast milk. Therefore, it is not recommended that alcohol be part of the diet for those who breastfeed.
Caffeine. Keep the habit of coffee (or tea) for no more than three cups a day, and remember to consume after breastfeeding, to limit the amount of caffeine that enters the baby’s body.
Pepper, parsley and sage. All three are considered anti-galactagogues (a substance that increases or stimulates the secretion or flow of milk in women), which means that they can decrease the milk supply if consumed in large quantities. Cooking with these condiments does not damage the supply, but if milk production falls after eating any of them, it is best to cut them out of the breastfeeding diet.
Do Certain Foods Cause Baby Colic?
When the baby has colic, it is natural to place the blame on the feeding. But, the truth is that foods will only make the baby have colic if he has a sensitivity or allergy to those foods.
Cow’s milk protein is the most common culprit, and only 2 to 3% of exclusively breastfed babies have an allergic reaction. Other common allergenic foods are soy, wheat, eggs, peanuts, nuts, fish and citrus.
If the baby is allergic it is likely to check for the manifestation of the allergy in the form of a rash such as eczema or a gastrointestinal symptom, such as blood in the stool, vomiting, colic or even difficulty breathing. If any of these symptoms occur, discontinue consumption and seek medical help as soon as possible.
One of the simplest ways to find out if one or more components in the breastfeeding diet is bothering the baby, is to eliminate them from the diet. Experts recommend cutting one food at a time, starting with the most likely: cow’s milk.
Often mothers feel overwhelmed with what to eat and what not to eat. Feeding for breastfeeders is important, but you don’t need to focus on that alone. While breastfeeding is a time of pleasure and bonding, and the baby is growing healthy, so this is the most important thing.
See Also: Lose Breastfeeding and Learn to Reeducate Feeding in Postpartum
My name is Dr. Alexis Hart I am 38 years old, I am the mother of 3 beautiful children! Different ages, different phases 16 years, 12 years and 7 years. In love with motherhood since always, I found it difficult to make my dreams come true, and also some more after I was already a mother.
Since I imagined myself as a mother, in my thoughts everything seemed to be much easier and simpler than it really was, I expected to get pregnant as soon as I wished, but it wasn’t that simple. The first pregnancy was smooth, but my daughter’s birth was very troubled. Joana was born in 2002 with a weight of 2930kg and 45cm, from a very peaceful cesarean delivery but she had already been born with congenital pneumonia due to a broken bag not treated with antibiotics even before delivery.
