Having a newborn baby and entering breastfeeding period can be a life-changing experience. It is not uncommon for us to hear mothers struggle to feed their babies and effortfully seek for a support, including for advice from mother figures who previously had been through it. Although some information based on experience are conveyed with a good intention, but some of them can be a backfire and cause trouble for both the mothers and the babies in the long run.
In this article we will discuss some myths about diet for breastfeeding moms and dive deeper into each of it.
Myth #1: “Eat this ‘superfood’ to increase milk supply”
Fact: Fulfilling calories intake in a healthy way will help milk supply
While some foods are beneficial for moms because in terms of their nutrition contents, too much emphasizing on certain foods may shift away the focus from the most critical one; that is fulfilling enough calories. According to Dietary Guideline for Americans, in the first six month of breastfeeding, healthy and underweight mothers need at least extra 330 calories per day and minimum 400 calories per day after 6 months. If these calories needs are not being met, even after consuming ‘superfoods’ to increase breastmilk production, mothers might still have milk supply problem. (For obese mothers, they may have to make an adjustment by restricting calories to promote weight loss.)
Therefore, instead of solely relying on certain foods, the right thing to do is by fulfilling calories through healthy diets, which come from the right source of nutrition at the right amount. For some tips, include lean protein into your diets to fulfill protein needs, whole grains to meet carbohydrate needs, and plenty of fruits and vegetables to accommodate the need for essential vitamins and minerals. Opting for nutrient-dense foods are the key.
Myth #2: Breastfeeding mothers cannot drink coffee
Fact: Caffeine, within limitation, is safe to consume.
The worry about caffeine is whether it might impact the baby. It is true that caffeine can be passed through breastmilk, however, it is estimated only 1% of it. Not only that, research also found that babies whose mother consume 3 cups of coffee a day (450 ml), which categorized as moderate, are not being affected. Their urine samples also did not show any signs of caffeine. The problem starts to appear when mother’s consumption of caffeine added up to 5 cups of coffee (750 ml). This cause caffeine to accumulate hence trigger symptoms in babies.
It is also worth noting that some babies are more sensitive to caffeine than others. These babies show signs such as being irritable, jittery, and having sleep trouble. For newborn babies, it takes longer time for them to break down caffeine (around 50-100 hours). Meanwhile, 3-4 months old babies only need 3-7 hours to do the same process. Therefore, mothers who wish to consume caffeine can wait for their babies to be old enough to be able digesting it.
Experts suggest the limit for caffeine consumption up to 300 mg per day for breastfeeding moms. It is equal to 2-3 cups of coffee (1 cup of coffee contains around 90 mg of caffeine). Pay attention to other source of caffeine as well, such as tea, colas, chocolate, sport drinks, and energy drinks so it does not end up exceeding recommended limit.
Myth 3: Breastfeeding mothers cannot eat spicy foods
Fact: You can still enjoy spicy in your meals during breastfeeding period
The third most common myths about diet for breastfeeding moms is they must stay away from spicy foods. This might stem from a worry that foods influence the flavor of breastfeeding milk.
However, there is no research that shows negative effects of mothers consuming spicy foods towards their infants.
Therefore, you can include spicy foods on your menu list. You might just want to be careful to eat with a certain level of spiciness, so you do not have to experience discomfort (such as heartburn and stomach upset) that might interfere with your baby’s feeding time.
Myth 4: Eating gassy vegetables can make your baby gassy and fussy
Fact: Gas and fiber will not be passed into breast milk
According to one research, women were limiting their diets, even to an extreme extent because of one thing: their babies’ fussiness was interpreted as discomfort caused by gas resulting from vegetables like cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower.
This myth is quite common because the argument seems pretty logical: “Broccoli is one of many vegetables that cause gas, therefore avoid eating them if you do not want to see your baby being gassy.”
However, according to research and studies, this claim has no scientific basis. Gasses are produced by the interaction between microflora in the intestine with fiber. Even though mothers consume vegetables, neither the fiber nor the gas will be absorbed by mothers and made its way into breast milk. What will be passed by the mother is in the form of breast milk’s flavor which can change according to what mothers consume, and this do not cause the baby to fussy. In fact, the variety of flavor in breast milk is necessary to increase infant’s acceptance towards healthy solid foods later on.
Conclusion
After we have covered several food myths among breastfeeding moms, there are four takeaways to remember: (1) mothers should focus more on meeting calories needs through healthy diets rather than relying on ‘super foods’ only; (2) breastfeeding mothers can consume caffeine which limited to 300 mg or 2-3 cups coffee a day; (3) with certain caution, mothers might eat spicy foods during breastfeeding, and (4) consuming gassy vegetables will not necessarily cause babies to be gassy.
Having restriction on diets for breastfeeding mothers can cause them a lot of difficulties, including psychological distress and confusion. On top of that, banning healthy foods without scientific reasons will negatively impact not only mothers but also babies; impeding their development during formative years and might lead towards adverse health outcomes later in adulthood. Thus, access to the information regarding proper diet and nutrition for breastfeeding is deeply essential.
In Nalagenetics, we can help you get your breastfeeding nutrition accurately based on your genetic blueprints by getting tested with NutriReadyTM. Contact us via WhatsApp at wa.me/628119941440 and begin your personalized nutrition now!
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