Best foods to eat when breastfeeding
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What are the best foods to eat when breastfeeding?
Many new moms feel that when they have a newborn, they have to choose between taking a shower, taking a nap or eating. It is absolutely critical that you take the time to eat a healthy balanced diet with as many fruits and vegetables as possible according to Kimberly Gilroy (NYS Certified Holistic Health Counselor).
That means choosing organic fruits and vegetables whenever possible, grass fed animals when choosing meat, and when buying foods that are canned, trying to avoid manufacturers that still use BPA in their cans.
BPA has been banned in the European Union, Japan, China and Canada. In animal studies, BPA has been linked to ADHD, early onset of puberty, obesity, reduced sperm count, early stages of breast cancer, altered immune function, poor motor skills and learning disabilities.
This leads to the obvious question, ‘How can you avoid BPA?’ or “How to find BPA free cans?’ After a lot of googling and reading, the best answer we found was in Time Magazine. Briefly, Time says “BPA-Free may Be Meaningless”. Apparently, manufactures often replace BPA with 2 other compounds called BPS and BPF. These ‘new’ compounds are structured very similar to BPA, which is what makes them good replacements for BPA. Unfortunately for us, these 2 replacement compounds, BPS and BPF, are hormonally active similar to BPA. Another resource we liked is bpafreepackage.org.
As when pregnant, if you are breastfeeding, you will want to avoid caffeine, minimize sugar, and minimize or eliminate any alcoholic beverages.
In a perfect world, you would have 3 balanced meals everyday. But when you have a new baby, that is just really difficult to do. At a minimum, try to have at least one balanced meal every day. Between meals, choose healthy snacks like cut-up fruits and vegetables and cheese with whole grain crackers can help a lot. Try to avoid cookies, chips and other salty snacks that do not offer much nutritional value.
Joy Padula (RN, IBCLC, Lactation Consultant) tells us “Breast milk is made up of mostly water, so it pulls a lot of water from you, therefore leaving you more parched and thirsty – so listen to your body and follow it’s cues.” You should always have a glass of water near you. Sometimes it’s difficult to drink the 8 glasses of water a day that is recommended. Also keep in mind, if you are eating a lot of fruits and vegetables, they are made up of mostly, so that counts as part of your water intake. The bottom line when breastfeeding, it is very important to focus on your water intake and make sure you are hydrating your body enough. Remember, you are drinking for two!
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