Are you wondering what to eat while breastfeeding?
Do you remember the looong list of foods to avoid while pregnant? It is all gone now. What to eat while breastfeeding is... basically anything!
Well, almost anyway. The good news is that the body will more or less produce excellent milk no matter what you stuff your body with. (Ok, within limits!) The bad news is that if you follow a really crappy diet, your body will be depleted of for example iron and calcium. You might become more tired than necessary; get a headache, a poor complexion and more.
My first advice is however to remember to eat food at all! It is very easy to not prioritize eating when you have a baby that wants to be in your arms more or less all the time. So eat food or you will almost certainly eat lots of candy - not that great if you want to feel good and maybe loose some weight!
Below you'll find a list of foods to eat and foods to avoid while nursing.
What To Eat While Breastfeeding (And What To Avoid)
You'll need this to produce enough milk without becoming dehydrated. And don't drink too much carbonated water; as such water often contains unnecessary amounts of sodium.
If you can't get around to fix lunch, at least eat some fruits!
These are great as they contain both fibers, vitamins, water and in some cases, like bananas, enough calories to make you cope for an hour or two more until you can eat some real food.
If your baby tends to be gassy or suffer from tummy pain, it may be wise to exclude foods that are known to increase gas. Such foods are broccoli, cabbage and brussels sprouts.
If you believe that your baby may be suffering from colic, excluding all cow's milk from you diet may help.
However, this really means all cow's milk, including small amounts of milk powder added to all sorts of foods. If you want to try this, first talk to a pediatrician. And remember that it may take weeks before you see any improvement in your baby.
While fish in general is a great source of for example omega 3 fatty acids (shown in studies to have a positive effect on your baby’s IQ), some types of fish are high in mercury. I bet you heard about this when you were pregnant.
The easiest way to go is to continue to avoid the same fish you did while pregnant. According to the FDA/EPA guidelines, you should not eat more than 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). Depending on whom you ask, some experts would also recommend avoiding tuna steak, Spanish mackerel, marlin, and grouper.
Make sure you check the guidelines where you live, as there may be other fishes that you should avoid too that live in the waters close to your home.
Varieties of fish that are safe to eat while breastfeeding are salmon (that live in oceans), rainbow trout, and canned mackerel. Shrimp, pollock and catfish are also fine.
If you are at home with your baby and tired it is sooo easy in my experience to have a cup of coffee... and another one...
But is it safe?
Well, according to American Academy of Pediatrics, some caffeine is not likely to affect your baby.
However, large amounts may result in you baby becoming fussy, over active and have problems to settle. This has to do with that it is hard for your baby's body to get rid of the caffeine, meaning that it tends to build up in his system. So have some coffee if you like, but use it with moderation! Also remember that black and even to extent green tea, chocolate, coca cola and other soft drinks also contain caffeine.
Red tea is, in my view, a great alternative to coffee and regular tea as it contains no caffeine. Some studies even indicate some colic relief from red tea.
Does alcohol belong to a list of what to eat while breastfeeding...?
Of course not!
But while you were pregnant, alcohol was really a potential danger for your baby. While breastfeeding, the risk is not at all as high although some alcohol actually does enter the breast milk.
When you were pregnant, the baby in your stomach would get the same amount of alcohol in his blood as you would, should you have a drink. While breastfeeding, your baby would consume milk containing the same level of alcohol as in you blood, actually drinking something with a very low amount of alcohol. That is a huge difference!
So even if your baby wouldn't get drunk or even be affected if you have a drink, there are other clear disadvantages of consuming alcohol while breastfeeding or while taking care of a baby in general!
One risk is that you might not be as able to take care of your baby. The risk of dropping him increases a lot for example.
The other thing is that you sleep heavier after consuming alcohol. Therefore it can be very dangerous to co-sleep with your baby after drinking alcohol. (This is true for dads too!)
Also there are a few studies that indicate that your let down reflex (milk production) may be impaired after consuming alcohol.
If you do want to have a glass of wine or a drink, wait at least two hours before breastfeeding if possible. This way the alcohol has disappeared from the milk.
Remember to drink a lot of water, since alcohol can dehydrate you.
Never ever get drunk while your baby is on your responsibility - breastfeeding or not!
Maybe it goes without saying, but consuming a lot of alcohol may very well affect your baby when you are breastfeeding. There are studies that show slower motorical development among babies whose mother consumes alcohol on a daily basis.
