Best foods for breastfeeding and a healthy diet
If you’re breastfeeding, a healthy diet is important as it can affect your baby as much as you. Get tips on what not to eat when breastfeeding and what to eat when breastfeeding.
- Eat a well-balanced diet that includes plenty of fibre.
- Eat a variety of foods. This can help ensure you are getting all of the nutrients you need.
- When it comes to fruits and veggies, they give you both nutrients and fibre. Fresh, frozen, or canned fruits and vegetables can all be healthy choices. Examples of one serving could be an extra small banana, 1 cup of raspberries, or 17 grapes. 1 serving of veg could be ½ cup of cooked vegetables such as broccoli, 1 cup of raw leafy vegetables, or 1 cup of raw vegetables, such as carrot.
- Easy ways to add extra servings include mixing fruit into yogurt or cereal, adding extra colourful veggies to salads, and adding grated veggies, like zucchini or carrot, to sauces and soups.
- Caffeine passes into breast milk so limit how much you have while breastfeeding. Experts recommend no more than 300 mg, or about 2 cups of coffee, per day.
- It’s best to avoid drinking alcohol and breastfeeding.
- If you’re exclusively breastfeeding, you’ll need an extra 330 – 400 calories of healthy food a day for the first six months.
- Stay hydrated. Drink 6-8 glasses of fluids—preferably water—a day. It’s a good idea to have a drink by your side when you’re breastfeeding.
- Your body needs protein, carbohydrate, and fat. Eat a good variety of foods including olive and canola oils, nuts and fish, whole grains, legumes, fruits & veggies, low fat dairy, lean protein like fish, poultry.
- Experts recommend that you keep taking your prenatal multivitamin for 4 to 6 weeks postpartum and as long as you are breastfeeding.
- Choose foods with healthy fats such as omega-3, omega-6, and monounsaturated fats – like those found in fatty fish, nuts, seeds, and olive oils.
- Be prepared with healthy snacks at nighttime. Many breastfeeding moms find themselves hungry during night feeds, especially in the first month.
Sources
Health Link BC. Nutrition While Breastfeeding. https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/tips-for-healthy-eating/pregnant-breastfeeding/. Accessed September 2020.
Health Link BC. Quick Tips: Adding Fruits and Vegetables to your diet. https://www.healthlinkbc.ca/health-topics/ud3719#ud3720 Accessed September 2020.
Public Health Agency of Canada. Healthy Pregnancy — Caffeine and Pregnancy. 2014. Accessed September 2020.
Health Canada. Caffeine in Food. 2012. Accessed September 2020.
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