Many new moms wonder how breastfeeding will affect their diet. “Most writings for the nursing mother…set up complicated ‘rules’ about
dietary intake…Thus one barrier to breastfeeding for some women is the
‘diet rules’ they see as too hard to follow or too restrictive.”Fortunately, there are no hard-and-fast “diet rules” for breastfeeding
mothers. You don’t have to change your eating habits in order to give
your baby the best.
You may have come across a mother or you are a mother who has asked the following:
“DO I HAVE TO EAT MORE THAN USUAL TO MAKE ENOUGH MILK FOR MY BABY?”
Although it used to be estimated that nursing mothers need an extra
five hundred calories a day to produce milk, recent studies indicate
that this recommendation may be too high.
The food a nursing mother eats is only one of her sources of energy. She
also draws on the fat stores she laid down during pregnancy. Milk
production is such an efficient process that during the early months the
energy supplied from stored body fat may be all the extra energy that
is needed for some mothers, especially those who are not very physically
active. 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.
So Really the extra Njahi,porridge or high energy dense food only needs to provide utmost only 500 extra calories!
“IS IT ALL RIGHT TO LOSE WEIGHT WHILE BREASTFEEDING?”
Breastfeeding makes it easier to shed the extra pounds put on during pregnancy.lactation may be an ideal time to lose weight. Breastfeeding naturally
mobilizes fat stores, even fat accumulated before pregnancy. But it is
important to go slowly. nursing mothers do nothing consciously to bring about weight loss during
the first two months after birth. During that time your body needs to
recover from childbirth and establish a good milk supply. Most
breastfeeding mothers will lose a few kgs while following a normal
diet. Breastfeeding mothers often shed extra kgs gained during
pregnancy when their babies are three to six months old.
If you aren’t losing weight as quickly as you’d like, you can begin by
increasing your activity level and decreasing your caloric intake. By
taking a two-mile walk five times a week with the baby in a stroller or
baby carrier while at the same time eliminating 100 calories from your
daily diet (the number of calories in three teaspoons of margarine or
butter), you can expect to lose two or three kgs a month.
“IF I DON’T EAT WELL WILL MY MILK STILL BE GOOD FOR MY BABY?”
Even with a less-than-ideal diet, a mother’s milk is the perfect food for her baby. “All over the world women produce adequate and even abundant milk on very inadequate diets.”
While it is true that a mother who is not eating well will produce
the milk her baby needs, any new mother–no matter how she feeds her
baby–will feel better, have more energy, and be more resistant to
illness if she eats wisely and well.
“WHAT DOES ‘EATING WISELY AND WELL’ MEAN?”
The principles of good nutrition are the same for the breastfeeding
mother as for the rest of the family: eat a wide variety of foods in as
close to their natural state as possible. Don’t limit yourself to only a
few choices in vegetables or a strictly meat and potatoes diet.
Chicken, turkey, fish, eggs, and dairy products are all sources of
animal protein, in addition to “red meats” like beef, pork, and lamb.
Legumes such as beans and peanuts are also good sources of protein,
especially when combined with grains, seeds, certain nuts, and dairy
products.
“WHAT CAN I EAT OR DRINK TO INCREASE MY MILK SUPPLY?”
There are many myths about “magic” foods that will increase a
mother’s milk supply–for example, “you need to drink milk to make milk.”
However, cows don’t drink milk, and there is no evidence that
particular foods or drinks affect milk supply. Milk supply is determined
mainly by supply and demand–the more often a baby nurses effectively,
the more milk there will be. Conversely, the less often (or less
effectively) a baby nurses, the less milk there will be.
If you are concerned about your milk supply, you can determine
whether your baby is getting enough milk by counting your baby’s wet
diapers and bowel movements. At least six to eight wet cloth diapers
(five to six disposables) and two bowel movements a day (fewer bowel
movements are normal in a baby older than six weeks) indicate that the
baby is getting enough milk. A weight gain of at least four to seven
ounces per week (at least a pound a month) is another indication that
the baby is getting enough. If your milk supply is low and your baby is
nursing effectively, nursing more often will quickly increase your
supply.
So there you have it you can still survive with normal food there is no magic in too much extra energy foods. There is simply no connection in those energy dense foods and production of milk! However, foods that increase your blood level (Vitamins), foods that repair your worn out tissues (Proteins) are vital for your body as a mechanism for repair after giving birth!
I love questions so #AskTheNutritionist!
Email me on: ndutaniceness@gmail.com
But how true is this? Well, just like the way we consume fish and obtain benefits of it, quail eggs have to be taken over time for any nutritional goal to be achieved! Doing my research to support the claims that have been made to people about the benefits of the egg, I have not found any scientific research that backs up their benefits. Infact, all claims that have been made over the internet seem to have come from farmers and producers of the egss who aim to make money out of innocence.
