A balanced diet for a nursing mother

A balanced diet for a nursing mother is a necessary measure that helps not only to provide the right amount and quality of milk for the baby, but also to normalize the digestive and metabolic processes in the mother's body.

Statistics say that the average daily amount of breast milk reaches 1,000 milliliters. Accordingly, with milk, the mother also loses calories, so their loss is worth replacing regularly. Nutritionists recommend the following daily combination of products, which provides the necessary caloric value and at the same time does not overload the gastrointestinal tract:

• Meat products - 100-150 g;
• Fish products - 100-150 g;
• Cottage cheese - 150 g;
• Hard cheese varieties - 30 g;
• Egg - 1 piece;
• Butter - 50 g;
• Milk, including sour-milk products - 1 liter;
• Fresh fruit - 250-300 g;
• Vegetables - 500 g (potatoes not more than 120 g);

A balanced diet for a nursing mother should meet the norm - 3000-3500 kilocalories per day. It should be borne in mind that protein food should make up a large part of the menu, up to 70%, not only meat and fish, but also fats and oils, are included in the concept of protein products. In addition, for normal digestion and saturation of the body with trace elements, vitamins, cereals - buckwheat, oatmeal - are needed. Excluded are various spicy seasonings and spices, and it is undesirable to consume garlic and onions in raw form, as these products can impart a specific flavor to breast milk (the baby can give up breast).

A balanced diet for a nursing mother is often perceived as a plentiful meal with a wide variety of dishes and in increased portions. This is one of the myths that came to us from unknown sources. To argue that the great-grandmothers and grandmothers ate the same way when they fed our ancestors, at least incorrectly. Previously, women ate much less and their menu was not so refined for a number of objective reasons. However, there was an undeniable advantage - almost all food was natural, without chemical ingredients and coloring agents. Therefore, the first myth should be debunked: 1.

There is for yourself and "for that guy" completely - useless pursuits. It will not only not increase the amount of milk, but it can reduce it. In addition, overeating can be detrimental to the figure, which has already changed during pregnancy. The main rule, which should adhere to a balanced diet for a nursing mother, is the quality of food, its calorie content and dietary vitamins. The need for a vitamin complex and minerals presupposes such daily norms:

• Vitamin A - up to 8000 IU;
• Vitamin D - 400-500 IU;
• Vitamin B1 - 2-3 mg;
• Vitamin B2 - 3-3,5 mg;
• Vitamin B6 - 3,5-4 mg;
• Ascorbic acid - 100-120 mg;
• Rutin (vitamin PP) - 20-25 mg;
• Calcium - 1800-2000 mg;
• Phosphorus - 3500-4000 mg;
• Magnesium - 1200-1300 mg;
• Iron - 20 mg.

The food should be at least five times a day.

Another misconception is as follows: "Eat what the soul desires, the body is wise and knows what it lacks." Mom may want chocolate, and the child after that gets an allergic reaction. The need to strictly control one's own food is a matter of maternal responsibility on a conscious level, which has nothing to do with the desires of the stomach. Allergens can be all nuts and seeds, eggs, vegetables and fruits of bright red hue, lemons, oranges and all citrus. It is also dangerous to include in the menu crustaceans - crabs, shrimp and crawfish. It is completely unacceptable to drink alcoholic beverages, even in small doses, it is desirable to refuse in principle from bad habits, at least for the period of breastfeeding.

A balanced diet for a nursing mother is a preference for products of natural origin, with minimal heat treatment and without the addition of seasonings, ketchups and mayonnaise, however much they might like.

Another "fashionable" myth is a mono-diet, which often leads to vitamin deficiency in both the mother and the child. The diet should not be made on the principle of "day-oatmeal, the other - buckwheat." Food should be as varied as possible. Nutritionists recommend the following products, as the most bioavailable for the organism of a nursing woman:

• Meat products - low-fat pork (tenderloin), which can be alternated with beef. It is also useful to include a white portion of poultry meat (turkey, chicken) in the menu.
• Soft varieties of cheese - unsalted cheese or Adyghe cheese.
• Cottage cheese - only with the condition of heat treatment, any fat content.
• Fermented milk products - kefir (any fat content), curdled milk (preferably home-made), yoghurts without aromatic additives.
• Stewed or boiled vegetables to improve intestinal motility - cauliflower, pumpkin, broccoli, Brussels sprouts.
• Raw vegetables - cucumbers, grated carrots.
• Fruits - in the form of juices, purees, kissels. It is advisable to consume fruits of local origin in order to avoid allergic reactions in the baby.
• Bread and bakery products are preferable to bezdozhzhevye, from flour mixed varieties or coarse grinding.

Breastfeeding mother should make up for the loss of breast milk with the help of abundant use of cow's milk. This is also a delusion, since whole milk, even in small amounts, can provoke flatulence in the mother, and hence in the child. Therefore, it is preferable to include dairy products in the diet. If whole milk is perceived by the body normally, it can be consumed only in boiled form.

A balanced diet for a nursing mother is also an exception to products provoking gassing. The fallacy can be called a false opinion that all consecutive kids should have flatulence and colic. The inevitability of these processes is another myth. If a lactating woman balances her diet, minimizes the consumption of sour and acidic foods, and vegetables will be heat treated, gas formation in the child can be avoided. You should also be careful with pearl barley, all beans, mushrooms, melon products (melons, watermelons). Colic can provoke bakery products from yeast dough and in general all sweet dishes.

A balanced diet for a nursing mother is a guarantee of the child's health, because a well-known fact in favor of breast milk is a reality, not a myth. In addition, a reasonable diet will help the mother to restore the figure and restore her former graceful outlines.