Diet For Breastfeeding Mothers
BEST FOOD FOR NEW MOMS
Breastfeeding is a natural way of nourishing your newborn baby with all the essential nutrients that facilitate his/her growth and development. Breastfeeding also helps build the baby’s immune system. A lactating mother shares her nutrients with the baby through her milk.
All mothers wish to give the best of everything to their babies. However, most of the nursing mothers are confused about do, don’ts of the postpartum journey. If you are breastfeeding mother, eat smart, and right proportions yourself to provide your baby with some wholesome nutrition.
Milk production puts a breast-feeding mother’s body on additional stress and thus right diet is important for their mother.
Maybe you need to avoid certain foods to prevent allergies or digestive problems in your baby. Perhaps you are you need to eat special foods to make the best quality milk or the right amount of milk for your baby.
Nutritional requirement of a breastfeeding mother is to some extent similar to the requirements of a pregnant mother. Hence, new mothers are recommended to continue to follow the same diet as they were taking during their pregnancy.
However, the calorie requirement of a breastfeeding mother is more than a pregnant mother. Breastfeeding mother required to take an additional 200 calories than the recommended calorie intake during pregnancy. It must be kept in mind that the required calorie must come from nutritional foods rather than an empty calorie from sugary food.
If you are concerned about consuming extra calorie, then do not get worried, a breastfeeding mother sheds about 1 to 4 kilogram every month even on consuming high-calorie diet. A mother has to understand the basics of breastfeeding nutrition at first. Therefore, let us focus on some important nutrients for breastfeeding.
What foods should mothers eat when breastfeeding?
PROTEIN
Protein is the building blog of the body and is the essential nutrient for growth, maintenance, and repair of cells. Newborn babies require a huge amount of protein, which is present in ample amount in breast milk.
Therefore, an extra amount of protein you need to add to your diet to meet the daily protein requirement, both yourself and your baby. A breastfeeding mother requires taking on an average of 75 grams of protein a day for the first 6 months and 68 grams of protein in the next 6 to 12 months. Eggs, dairy, meat, beans, soy products, pulses and nuts are some excellent sources of protein.
INCLUDE GALACTOLOGUES
GALACTOLOGUES are substances present in foods that naturally help to increase breast milk production to feed the baby. Do not forget to include these foods enriched with GALACTOLOGUES. Traditionally new mothers are suggested to incorporate foods that are naturally loaded with nutrients that help optimize milk secretion.
Usually, your regular diet may not boost milk production, and your baby may not get enough breast milk, essential in the initial years of growth. Some of those lactogenic foods popularly given to a new mother to enhance milk production are sesame seeds, almonds, fennel, fenugreek, ghee, chickpea, garlic, and ginger. These can be easily included in your diet to increase milk secretion naturally.
Facts About Lactose Intolerance In Your Baby That A Mom Must Know !
ENERGY
As discussed above a breastfeeding mother has to include extra calorie for increased milk production. The minimum recommended daily calorie intake for a non-breastfeeding or non-pregnant woman is 2000 calories while lactation demands an additional 500 calorie suggested for a breast-feeding mother.
Eat nutrient-dense foods for this extra energy. Whole grains, oatmeal, potato, rice, barley, ragi, and fruits are a few foods giving a nutritious source of energy.
FAT
Fats are the primary source of breastfeeding mothers. You must choose foods with healthy fat to keep you and your baby in good health. Sources of healthy fat are olive oil, canola oil, nuts and seeds, Avogadro as well as fatty fish like salmon.
Restrict the intake of saturated and trans fat as this category of fat is considered to be unhealthy. Whole milk, butter, tropical oils such as palm and kernel, lard and high-fat meats contain saturated fat and unfit for new mothers. Whereas trans fat is present in partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.
VITAMINS and MINERALS
You need to take more vitamins like vitamin A, B6, B12, and folic acid for yourself and your feeding baby. Minerals like iron and calcium are especially important for breastfed babies. You may not need to add more than the recommended amount of these vitamins and minerals but pay attention to your diet so that you are taking a sufficient amount of these nutrients to fulfill your daily-recommended dose.
Incorporate all these vital vitamins and minerals in the diet for a healthy breastfeeding journey for you and your baby. Few foods that are rich in the vitamin and the mineral are spinach, carrot, chickpea, broccoli, salmon, almonds, lentils, beans, tuna, kiwi, brussels sprout, plain yogurt, dark and green leafy vegetables.
STAY HYDRATED
When you are breastfeeding, it is normal to be thirstier than usual, due to increased secretion of the hormone oxytocin. Your oxytocin levels increase when your baby latches onto your breast and this, in turn, initiates your milk to start flowing. This also stimulates your thirst, so drink enough water to meet the increased requirement for milk production.
Mothers who are breastfeeding should take an ample amount of fluid specially water along with eating a well-balanced diet. This ensure an adequate supply of milk. Drink at least 8 glasses of water every day. Avoid alcohol and aerated drinks.
Alcohol makes its way into your breast milk but babies metabolize the alcohol at only half the rate of adults. So avoid drinking alcoholic beverages. Also, avoid drinking coffee. Coffee contains caffeine and this caffeine passes on to your baby through breast milk.
Newborn babies are more sensitive to caffeine. If the lactating mother takes coffee, it might happen that her baby develops a sleeping problem and stay irritated. Lack of good sleep will hamper your baby’s growth. Switch to healthier options instead to stay hydrated such as fresh fruit juices, green coconut, and lemon juice.
So, make a smart choice regarding your own nutrition and cherish the pleasant motherhood. Experience while watching your newborn grown up.
Why Folic Acid Is Important Before And During Pregnancy?
Folic acid is a nutrient that every pregnant is recommended to take. It has also been proved in one study that women who consume folic acid from one year before conception reduce their risk of premature delivery by 50 percent.
