Diet for breastfeeding mom

A diet for a nursing mother is the creation of an individual, personalized diet based on general dietary recommendations. The specifics of the diet depend on the characteristics of the digestive tract, the mother's immune system, as well as the characteristics of the microflora of the newborn baby. There is no single, universal menu, because each organism is individual. The parameters for selecting products are quite simple: you need to carefully monitor the condition of the baby's skin every day, observe the consistency of feces and the process of gas formation. The baby's skin is the first to react to an allergenic product, then flatulence, colic and either diarrhea or constipation may develop.

The diet of a nursing mother should be based on the following principles:

• New products should be introduced into the diet sequentially, gradually, monitoring the condition of the baby's skin and intestines. The reaction may appear within two days.
• Medication for a nursing mother is not recommended; if it is prescribed, a consultation with the attending pediatrician is necessary regarding the method of feeding the child.
• It is unacceptable to consume alcohol in any form, including in the form of medicinal tinctures.
• You should exclude provoking foods: smoked and canned foods, foods that provoke flatulence - cabbage, legumes, carbonated drinks, bright red vegetables and fruits, strong rich broths, citrus fruits, honey.

Diet for a nursing mother. A weekly menu option taking into account the process of formation of the enzymatic system of the digestive tract of the newborn.

The first two days of breastfeeding:

• 250-300 g buckwheat porridge (cook in water with vegetable oil);
• Crackers or crispbread. Fresh bread should be excluded from the menu;
• 100 g of hard or soft cheese.
• 200 g lean pork or beef (boil);
• 100 g raisins or dried apricots;
• Drink plenty of fluids (up to 2 liters) – chamomile or nettle infusion, still mineral water.

From the third to the sixth day:

• The amount of liquid should be gradually reduced, since milk usually starts to come in at this time. You should drink no more than one liter of liquid per day.
• One baked apple;
• 350-400 g boiled cauliflower or stewed zucchini;
• 250 g of fermented baked milk, yogurt without fruit additives or 150 g of boiled milk;
• 250-300 ml of dried fruit decoction;
• 250-300 g of oatmeal or buckwheat porridge (cook in water), you can add 30-40 grams of bran to prevent constipation;
• Vegetable soup.

From the second to the fourth week of the baby's life, when the child's enzymatic function becomes more active, the following products can be included in the menu:

• 250-300 g boiled fish;
• 250 ml beef broth (bone broth should be excluded from the menu);
• 250-300 g of millet, oatmeal, rice or buckwheat porridge, cooked in water;
• 200-250 whole cottage cheese, provided it has been heat-treated (casserole, cheesecakes);
• One fresh apple a day;
• Parsley or chamomile decoction to normalize digestion – 250-300 ml;
• Liquid intake is not limited in volume.

Starting from the fourth week, the child's intestinal microflora will normalize, so the following types of products can be gradually added to the diet:

• 250-300 g boiled (stewed) chicken meat, alternate with beef;
• 1 egg per day or every other day, boiled or soft-boiled;
• 2-3 potatoes, boiled or baked;
• 150 g boiled and grated beets;
• Apple can be alternated with pear or banana;
• 100 g dry biscuits;
• 250 g of juice with pulp – cherry, apple, pear. Citrus juices should be excluded.

A diet for a nursing mother does not include fatty, high-calorie foods. In pediatric dietetics, the opinion about the nutritional properties of fatty mother's milk is considered a misconception. The higher the fat content of mother's milk, the more difficult the process of its digestion in the child's digestive tract. Vegetable oils can provide normal fat content of milk without saturating it excessively.

Regarding the volume of daily liquid consumed, neither nutritionists nor doctors have yet come to a consensus. The diet of a nursing mother includes as much water, decoctions and compote as is needed for a normal volume of breast milk. If there is not enough milk, in the evening before the next night feeding, you should drink at least 300 milliliters of liquid. It is better if the decoction or compote is prepared in advance and stored in a thermos.

Recommended drinks to increase lactation and milk volume:

• Melissa decoction. Pour one teaspoon of the herb with a glass of boiling water, leave for at least an hour. Drink half a glass twice a day.
• In the first days, to increase lactation, it is recommended to take a decoction of nettle. Three tablespoons of dry grass are poured with half a liter of boiling water, infused for at least an hour, I drink 20-30 minutes before meals, a third of a glass.
• Parsley decoction. Grind a dessert spoon of parsley seeds in a coffee grinder, pour a glass of boiling water, or simmer for 10-15 minutes. Take two tablespoons before meals 3 to 5 times a day. Parsley has a diuretic effect, so it can be included in the menu with breaks of two to three days.
• Chamomile decoction. In addition to increasing lactation, chamomile promotes normal digestion and has a mild sedative effect. The decoction should not be strong, a teaspoon of the dry plant is poured with a glass of boiling water and infused for no more than 20 minutes. Drink the decoction on an empty stomach in the amount that the body allows, that is, at will. You can take chamomile without restrictions.
• Weak green tea that can be mixed in equal proportions with whole milk.
• A decoction of dried fruits, which should not be made too concentrated.

A nursing mother's diet should not be vegetarian, both the mother and the child need animal protein. However, if dietary beliefs about eating meat do not allow the nursing mother to eat such food, meat should be replaced with fish, but in no case with soy products, which can provoke an allergic reaction in the child. In addition to the rules of nutrition and selection of dishes, so that the nursing mother's diet is not monotonous, it is important to follow a rest and sleep regime. Sometimes it is a good night's sleep that helps a nursing woman restore lactation and give the child the opportunity to receive rich and high-calorie food.

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