Breastfeeding is a special stage, not only providing perfect nutrition for the baby but also building a solid foundation for the baby’s long-term health. For mothers, maintaining a reasonable diet during this time not only ensures an abundant and quality milk supply but also helps the body recover more quickly after giving birth. Let’s learn the nutritional secrets of the breastfeeding stage in the following article to both balance nutrition for the mother and ensure adequate nutrition for the baby.

Nutrition during breastfeeding directly affects the health and development of children. Without breast milk, children are at high risk of malnutrition, susceptible to infections, and even death. Therefore, nutritional care for mothers is a way to protect the overall health of both mother and baby.

Why is it important to pay attention to nutritional care during breastfeeding?

Nutrition during breastfeeding plays a key role in ensuring the health of mothers and the overall development of children. Breast milk is not only the best source of nutrition but also provides natural antibodies, helping children effectively prevent diseases. In addition, maintaining a scientific nutritional regimen also helps mothers recover quickly after giving birth, prevent weakness, and improve overall health.

Adequate nutrition during breastfeeding is important for both mother and baby.

The mother’s nutritional regimen during breastfeeding directly affects both the quantity and quality of breast milk. A nutritious diet will ensure the supply of essential micronutrients for the baby. On the contrary, if the mother does not supplement enough necessary nutrients, breast milk will be deficient, negatively affecting the child’s development. In particular, breast milk in the first 6 months is an important source of antibodies, helping children increase their resistance, reduce the risk of infection, and support both mental and physical development.

Nutritional needs during breastfeeding

The energy and nutritional needs of breastfeeding mothers often increase, even exceeding the pregnancy period. The reason is that mothers lose a lot of energy and nutrients during labor, producing colostrum and breast milk to feed their children immediately after birth.

Energy needs

Breastfeeding women need about 500kcal more per day than when they were not pregnant. On the other hand, specific energy needs also depend on the level of physical activity and weight gain during pregnancy. Specifically:

• Women with good nutrition, pregnancy weight gain from 10kg – 12kg: Light workers need to ensure daily energy needs of 2260kcal, while average workers need about 2550kcal per day.
• Women with poor nutrition, weight gain less than 10kg during pregnancy: Need to supplement diverse foods, increase energy supply to meet the needs of breastfeeding.

Postpartum women need to pay attention to supplementing enough calories every day.

Nutritional needs

Nutrient needs during breastfeeding are as follows:

• Protein: In the first 6 months after giving birth, mothers need to supplement about 79g of protein per day. From the 7th to the 12th month, the need decreases to 73g per day. Animal protein should account for more than 30% of total protein consumption. High-quality protein sources that mothers should supplement include: Fish, meat, eggs, milk and beans.
• Fat: Fat should account for 20% – 30% of the mother’s total energy intake. In particular, fats such as: EPA, DHA, omega-3, omega-6… found in fish oil, fatty fish and vegetable oil are essential for the baby’s brain and vision development.
• Vitamins and minerals: To ensure adequate micronutrients, mothers should consume more than 400g of fruits and vegetables per day. Supplementing fiber from vegetables also helps mothers prevent constipation after giving birth.
• Water: To meet the needs of milk production, mothers need to drink 2 – 2.5 liters of water per day. Filtered water, fruit juice and soup are all good choices to maintain the necessary amount of water.

During breastfeeding, pregnant mothers need to drink enough water to meet the needs of milk production.

Foods that breastfeeding women should eat

What should breastfeeding women eat? A balanced, varied diet not only helps mothers ensure their health but also supports the milk production process, providing optimal nutrition for the baby. In addition, when mothers eat a variety of foods, the flavor of the milk also changes, helping the baby get used to many different flavors, making it easier for the weaning stage later. Suggested foods include:

• Salmon: Rich in DHA, not only supports the development of the baby’s nervous system but also helps improve the mother’s mood after giving birth.
• Beef: A source of iron, protein and vitamin B12, beef helps mothers maintain energy. Choose lean beef to minimize the amount of fat taken into the body.
• Low-fat dairy products: Yogurt, fresh milk and cheese provide vitamin D, calcium, protein and vitamin B, supporting bone health for both mother and baby.
• Green vegetables and fruits: Vegetables such as spinach and broccoli are rich in vitamins A, C, iron and calcium, which are very good for the health of mother and baby. Vegetables and beans are also a source of fiber to help prevent constipation.
• Fruit: Mothers should consume at least 150g of fruit per day. In particular, citrus fruits are rich in vitamin C to help restore and strengthen the immune system.
• Whole grains and brown rice: These are long-term sources of energy and support the production of quality milk for babies.

Fruits are indispensable foods during breastfeeding.

Foods that mothers should avoid during breastfeeding

Foods that mothers consume during breastfeeding can affect the quality of milk and the health of the baby. Therefore, mothers need to be especially careful with the following food groups:

• Alcohol and beer: The baby’s nervous and digestive systems are still weak, even small amounts of alcohol can be harmful. In addition, alcohol and beer also negatively affect the mother’s ability to produce milk.
• Tea and coffee: Contains caffeine – a stimulant that can make the baby restless, uncomfortable and have trouble sleeping. Therefore, mothers should minimize the use of these drinks.
• Fish with high mercury content: Some types of fish such as swordfish, shark, tuna contain a lot of mercury, which can be passed through breast milk and harm the development of the baby’s nervous system.
• Strong spices: Onions and garlic can change the taste of breast milk, making the baby uncomfortable or breastfeeding less.
• Spicy foods: Can irritate the mother’s digestive system and negatively affect the baby’s intestines.
• Perishable foods or foods suspected of being spoiled: These foods have a high risk of poisoning, directly affecting the mother and indirectly affecting the baby through milk.

In particular, after the mother eats a food, she should carefully observe the baby’s reaction to detect early signs of allergies such as:

• The baby is lazy to breastfeed, sucks poorly, has indigestion, diarrhea.
• Red rash, swollen eyes, swollen lips.
• Runny nose or vomiting.

Foods that can easily cause allergies include: Cow’s milk, beef, eggs, shrimp, crab, clams… If the baby shows unusual signs, the mother should immediately stop eating that food and consult a doctor.

Avoid unhealthy foods during breastfeeding to ensure good health.

Some notes on nutrition during breastfeeding

• Eat a full and varied diet, do not abstain too much, but need to supplement enough nutrients to provide energy for the body and ensure a sufficient milk supply of both quality and quantity for the baby.
• Choose fresh, hygienic foods, avoid processed foods or foods suspected of being unsafe.
• Get proper rest, avoid stress, anxiety or insomnia to help the body recover quickly. Keep an optimistic and comfortable spirit to help improve milk quality and overall health.
• When you need to take medication during breastfeeding, you should consult your doctor, especially with drugs such as: Antibiotics, hormonal drugs or drugs that affect the nervous system, to avoid unwanted effects on the baby.

Nutrition during breastfeeding is an important foundation that not only helps mothers recover their health after giving birth but also helps the baby develop comprehensively. By choosing the right foods and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, mothers not only take good care of themselves but also give the best start to their children. Always pay attention to nutrition during this special period so that both mother and baby are healthy and happy!