What to eat and drink at Christmas if you are breastfeeding your baby
Celebrating Christmas with a newborn baby makes these dates even more special in which meals and dinners with friends and family take place. However, if you are breastfeeding your baby, you may have many doubts about what you should or should not eat and, of course, what you should and should not drink.
To fully enjoy Christmas meals and dinners is posbie. If you still have recent dietary limitations of pregnancy, now with breastfeeding you should not worry because the restrictions are much less than you think. The feeding of the mother in breastfeeding is very important for both you and your baby, and if your goal is to enjoy these holidays breastfeeding your baby with a little common sense it will be that easy.
What to eat or not eat at Christmas if you are breastfeeding your baby
Christmas lunches and dinners are usually more plentiful than usual. Everything is celebrated around the table and it seems that we are chaining one food with another, what should you keep in mind? Alba Padró, international lactation consultant and co-founder of LactApp, offers the following tips for mothers who are breastfeeding to enjoy the holidays:
1. There are no prohibited foods when you breastfeed your baby. Not the garlic, nor the vegetables, nor any type of vegetable. All foods modify the taste of breast milk, but not only nothing happens, but it is good that the baby is accustomed to different flavors, it will be good when you stop breastfeeding exclusively and start taking other foods.
2. If your baby is allergic to any food, you should go with special care. Remember that many times, when we cook, we can forget the presence of some ingredients so you have to be very sure of what you are going to eat. When in doubt, it is better to have a specific meal, not because of being a nursing mother, but to avoid allergic reactions in the baby.
3. As you already know, you do not need to eat for two. But one day is a day, so despite the fact that to breastfeed you only need about 500 extra daily calories, if you exceed a meal, do not worry. Remember that breastfeeding will help you get rid of all those calories you do not need.
4. Eat as healthy as possible, as you do all year, especially for your health. The norm is the same for everyone, whether you are a nursing mother or not. As long as you do not have any type of allergy or intolerance, a healthy diet consists mainly of fruits, vegetables and legumes, avoiding empty calories and precooked foods. .
5. Even if your diet is not perfect, your milk will be the most appropriate and optimal for your baby. The body always prepares the ideal recipe for your child and the diet you follow at Christmas, will not change its quality.
What to drink or not drink if you are breastfeeding your baby
You know if breastfeeding the baby you can have a glass of wine or a beer is the main concern of mothers who are breastfeeding their baby during the holidays. Can a nursing mother drink alcohol? If you can avoid drinking alcohol, much better. But does something happen if, exceptionally, you drink a glass of wine, for example, or a beer, even if you are breastfeeding? While during pregnancy is totally discouraged, breastfeeding is a completely different situation.
It is not known how much alcohol the nursing mother can take to make it safe for the baby. Therefore, the official indications in this regard are correct in recommending that the mother not drink alcohol during breastfeeding. The problem with this recommendation is that limiting the mother with such strict indications about her diet ends up causing her to decide to wean earlier than she would like, with the consequent damage to the baby's health.
Therefore, although alcohol is never healthy or recommended, for the health of the baby it is preferable that the mother take a drink at Christmas and continue breastfeeding to abandon breastfeeding for not being able to toast during the holidays. Obviously, if your baby is less than one month old, premature or sick, you must take extreme precautions and avoid any alcohol consumption.
Regarding other drinks, such as drinks with gas or juices, it is widely known that they are not healthy, but they will not affect your milk or the baby, so if you want to drink more than water during these holidays, you can drink it perfectly while you are breastfeeding. .
If what worries you is caffeine, calm, you can make a moderate consumption of coffee and tea without affecting your child. If you have taken more than usual and you notice that you are very irritable or find it hard to fall asleep, it is for that reason and in a few hours it will pass. But most likely, the changes and the fuss of the parties do not make much fun.
Patricia Ranilla
Advice: Alba Padró, international lactation consultant and co-founder of LactApp
It may interest you:
- How to care for the premature baby
- Breastfeeding crisis, how to overcome them according to the AEP
- Maternal nutrition during lactation
- Breast milk during lactation
