Healthy mum & baby hinderers
1. Fast carbs
In order to help balance blood sugar levels and maintain energy avoid confectionary and simple sugars, particularly ‘hidden’ sugars in processed foods. Especially watch out for added sugars in reduced-fat foods as it is often added to replace.
The flavor lost when the fat was removed. Avoid refined carbohydrates such as white rice, white bread, and white pasta as refining depletes up to 15 different nutrients. Only have dried fruit in the same quantity as you would have fruit fresh such as two or three dried apricots as a snack. Avoid drinks with added sugars such as sweetened soft drinks, squashes, and undiluted fruit juices. An average 250ml sized glass of fruit juice has about six or seven teaspoons of sugar and just one glass of fruit juice a day has been shown to increase the odds of developing type 2 diabetes by 18%
2. Drinks with artificial sweeteners
This is not ideal as some may also have health risks but there are natural sweeteners, which does not raise blood sugar levels. Also, avoid carbonated drinks as the acidity can deplete calcium stores.
Empty calories
Choose foods, which provide nutrients along with calories. It is easy to reach for high-calorie snacks like biscuits or crisps but they provide a hefty dose of calories, a craving for more and few nutrients. Opt instead for whole-grain crackers or carrot sticks with a mini houmous tub or a piece of fruit and a handful of nuts.
High saturated fats
3. Avoid saturated animal fats
This is mostly found in intensively reared meat and high-fat dairy products, which can hinder essential fats in the body. Chose naturally lower-fat cheeses and organic free-range meat where you can. Try stews with just a little quality meat bulked out with beans or lentils and you can add fibre at no extra cost. Red meat is a good source of iron but choose meat from an animal, which has run around and eaten plants for full nutritional benefit. Avoid processed foods, which can be high in ‘hidden’ fats, and deep-fried foods.
4. Caffeine
Caffeine can lead to baby feeling nervous and irritable and can disrupt feeding and sleep. Babies cannot process caffeine so it remains in their blood for up to 80 hours, potentially having a negative effect. Coffee can also flavor the milk that can put the baby off. Avoid or minimize coffee, tea, energy drinks, colas, and chocolate to help keep baby relaxed.
5. Allergens
If you or your family have a history of allergies to foods, especially nuts, then it is recommended that you avoid eating them and foods containing them while you are breastfeeding.
6. Alcohol
Ideally, avoid alcohol as the effect on individual babies is not known and it can deplete mum’s nutrients. If you are having an occasional drink, you can time it to have the least effect on the baby. It takes about two hours for a unit of alcohol to clear from mum’s blood so plan your alcoholic drink and baby’s feeds so you not feeding for a couple of hours after having a drink. As it can be difficult to always know when a baby will want a feed expressing milk before an alcoholic drink may be the safest option. Even if you wait a couple of hours small amounts of alcohol will still remain in the milk and this may make it smell and taste different and put baby off feeding.
7. Smoking
Nicotine is a stimulant and, passed on to the baby, can cause nausea and vomiting. It can also reduce milk volume because it inhibits milk hormone production. Babies of mothers who smoke tend to be weaned sooner and have a greater incidence of colic. Passive smoking could trigger respiratory problems and can still expose the baby to nicotine, this has been shown by the fact that nicotine is present in the baby’s urine.
8. Environmental contaminants
Avoid pollutants where you can. Babies are exposed to chemicals through breast milk. Almost all mothers carry contaminants. Losing weight too fast post-birth can release chemicals from mum’s fats stores and make them available to the baby through the milk. So stick to losing no more than about 1lb a week, if you need to lose weight post-birth. To minimize your exposure
To contaminants, avoid shark, swordfish, king mackerel, and marlin. These fish are potentially too high in mercury, which could affect the baby’s nervous system development.
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Source: Harley’s Digital Marketing &
Idah Muthama – VitabioticsKe
