Eating & Drinking Right When Breastfeeding

It is often said that a breastfeeding mother needs about 300 to 500 extra calories per day to successfully breastfeed  her baby. Whilst the verdict is still out on the exact number of extra calories or servings of food  that is actually necessary, it is clear that it is important to maintain a healthy well-balanced diet  to ensure that your diet supplies the nutrients you need during breastfeeding, such as protein, calcium, iron and vitamins. This is essential for your own wellbeing as well as to ensure that your body can produce enough milk for your growing baby.

Fluids, Fluids and More Fluids

It is paramount that you drink plenty of fluids when you are breastfeeding. A glass of water or juice before each feed helps to ensure adequate fluid intake and helps trigger the let-down reflex.    It is also important to drink according to your thirst throughout the day to make up for the fluid used in the production of milk. Avoid tea, coffee and soft drinks (which are usually high in sugar and often contain additives) and drink plenty of water. Fresh unsweetened fruit juices, clear soups and soya bean milk are also healthy alternatives.

Mother's Tip:

When I realised just how much my fluid intake could materially influence my milk supply, I made sure that I had many “drinking points” in various parts of the house like the kitchen, the bathroom, the bedroom and all my favourite nursing corners to remind myself to drink. This does not have to be elaborate and need only consist of a jug of water and/or a cup next to the tap. I found that having water easily accessible in the parts of the house where I would often settle down to feed baby meant that I could conveniently reach out for a drink before or during the feed without having to trouble my husband or interrupt the feed to get that much needed drink.

Protein

It is important to include plenty of protein in your diet including meat, fish, chicken, eggs, cheese and yoghurt, nuts, seeds and legumes for example, lentils, baked beans and split peas.

Calcium

Good sources of calcium include milk and its by products such as cheese and yoghurt, fish whose bones are eaten like ikan bilis and sardines, seeds (like sunflower and sesame seeds), soyabean products (especially soya milk fortified with calcium – look for a brand that includes around 120mg calcium per 100ml soymilk), green leafy vegetables and dried fruit.

Iron

Pregnancy uses up your iron stores. During breastfeeding, you need to rebuild your iron stores with iron-rich foods such as red meat, liver, green leafy vegetables, sesame seeds, nuts, and legumes (eg baked beans), dried fruit, egg yolk, wholegrain breads and cereals.

Folate and vitamins

Breastfeeding also increases your need for:

Folate – present in wholegrain cereals, lentils, beans, peas, green leafy vegetables such as spinach, broccoli, cabbage and brussel sprouts, mushrooms, egg yolk, oranges and bananas.

Vitamin C – present in citrus fruits, berries, tropical fruit, tomatoes, capsicum and potatoes

Vitamin A – present in dark green and yellow vegetables such as broccoli, carrots and pumpkin.

Whilst it is important to know your foods and be mindful of what you eat when you are breastfeeding, you should not get carried away and overeat by trying to adhere to a “recommended” food pyramid that consists of 5 - 7 servings of vegetables & fruits, 4 servings of milk & milk products, 3 servings of animal/vegetable proteins etc.  The Breastfeeding Answer Book, LLLI  states that a lactating mother should "follow a basic approach to good nutrition by eating a well balanced diet of foods, in as close to their natural state as possible. As is true for the rest of the family, the breastfeeding mother should eat fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grain breads and cereals as well as calcium rich and protein rich foods".

Thus, you will do well just by following a few basic guidelines without having to worry overmuch about counting the calories or subjecting yourself to too many restrictions.

• Grill, steam, bake or casserole rather than fry your food

• Eat vegetables as fresh as possible and eat them raw or lightly cooked to preserve nutritional value

• Eat a wide variety of fruit

• Choose fresh or frozen foods over tinned and processed foods which often contain high levels of preservatives and additives

• Limit your intake of sugary or high fat foods, such as soft drinks, fruit juices, sweet biscuits, cakes, desserts, chips and takeaways and substitute them with raw vegetables, fruit, dried fruit and nuts