What is reasonable nutrition for breastfeeding mothers?
1. Increase meals and diversify foods
According to experts from the Institute of Nutrition, breastfeeding mothers should have a reasonable diet to ensure the best milk supply. Eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, make sure mothers eat at least 5 types of fruits and vegetables every day. Eat starchy foods like bread, cereal, pasta, rice and potatoes to add energy. When hungry, instead of eating foods that contain high amounts of fat and sugar, you should eat starchy foods with more calories.
When breastfeeding, mothers only need to eat 1-2 bowls of rice a day. You should provide protein from lean meat, chicken, eggs and legumes such as soybeans and peanuts. Eat fish at least twice a week, including 1 portion of white fish and 1 portion of fatty fish. If possible, milk and dairy products such as cheese and yogurt are also rich sources of protein, and provide a sufficient amount of calcium.
Eat lots of fiber because the starchy foods mentioned above contain a fair amount of fiber. Grains, fruits, vegetables and legumes also provide plenty of fiber. Eating a lot of vegetable fiber, fiber in cereals and vegetables is very useful to prevent constipation – a common problem in the postpartum period. Normal people need to drink 6 – 8 glasses of water every day. Breastfeeding mothers should drink 10-12 glasses a day.
According to the Department of Maternal and Child Health, Ministry of Health, after giving birth, most mothers need from 1800 to 2200 calories per day, and more than 500 more calories (equivalent to 3 cups of rice per day) if breastfeeding. Mom. If you are underweight or have more than one child, the number is even higher.
To meet this energy need, the mother needs to eat more meals: the daily diet of a breastfeeding mother should be divided into several meals (3-6 meals/day, including 3 main meals and snacks). . Meals need a variety of foods with 4 groups of substances: carbohydrates, protein, fat, vitamins and minerals.
Immediately after giving birth or at the latest within the first month after giving birth, mothers are advised to take 1 high-dose vitamin A pill (200,000UI), in addition, mothers should continue to use iron tablets or multi-micronutrient tablets ( at least maintained for the first 1 month after birth).
2. What foods should you eat?
After giving birth, the mother does not need to eat any special foods. Just try to follow a balanced diet – that is, combine many different healthy foods, including starches such as rice, pho, noodles, bread, potatoes; Dairy products: such as yogurt, fresh milk; To ensure the quality of milk for your baby, you need to supplement your body with healthy fats from fish oil, nuts, and cold-sea fish like salmon; The mother’s meals need to ensure enough animal protein (meat, fish, eggs, milk…) and plants (beans, sesame, cereals,…)
Add more vegetables and fruits to your daily diet to get enough vitamins and minerals, and enough fiber to avoid constipation.
Breastfeeding mothers need to drink enough water, on average about 2.0 – 2.5 liters of water/day (equivalent to 12 to 15 cups of water). You can detect your body’s dehydration based on your urine: if your urine is dark yellow or has a strong odor, you need to drink more water.
Some other notes on nutrition for postpartum mothers: After giving birth, you should not abstain strictly, but on the contrary, you need to eat well and diversely so that your body is fully supplied with vitamins and minerals. Giving birth causes you to lose a large amount of blood, leading to anemia and iron deficiency. Therefore, it is necessary to supplement iron in the daily diet. Iron of animal origin is found in foods such as liver, beef, chicken, shellfish, eggs… Iron of plant origin comes from tofu, beans, dark vegetables (spinach). , broccoli, bok choy…).
When breastfeeding, the foods you eat can pass through your milk supply to your baby. So be careful with foods like alcohol because your baby’s digestive system and nervous system are still very immature and need to be protected from any amount of alcohol, no matter how small. You should not drink too much tea or coffee while breastfeeding, because they contain stimulants that can make the baby restless, uncomfortable, and unable to sleep.
Fish containing mercury should also be limited because mercury in breast milk can affect the baby’s neurological development, so you should limit eating fish high in mercury such as tuna, swordfish, and shark.
Mothers need to monitor the baby’s reaction after you eat a certain food, because it may cause the baby to be allergic with symptoms such as: Not feeding well, not gaining weight evenly, diarrhea, indigestion; Red rash (around the mouth, cheeks, arm or leg folds…); Swelling of eyes, lips or face; Runny nose; Vomiting. Each baby may be sensitive to different foods. Some foods that can easily cause allergies include: beef, cow’s milk, eggs, hard-shelled animals such as oysters, shrimp, crabs, etc.