Lose Baby Weight

When a mum is breastfeeding it is really important to eat a diet good in nutrients and to avoid any kind of diet that severely restricts calorie intakes and which contain weight loss accelerants or chemicals.

Our bodies burn approximately 500 calories per day when breastfeeding so we also need to consume more food to provide our body with the energy to produce the milk and healthy snacks during the day are a great way to boost your calorie intake.



Many mums choose to take a breastfeeding supplement when they are breastfeeding as many women are deficient in some key nutrients - but below you can see where these nutrients can be derived from if you do not wish to take a supplement. We have also listed below the foods that are generally considered best avoided when breastfeeding and the ones that can often cause allergies in babies.

Nutrients needed in breastfeeding

• Iodine – you can get from seafood, seaweed, iodized salt, eggs
• Iron – you can get from lean red meats, seafood, beans, leafy greens, tofu and green vegetables
• Calcium – you can get from almonds, leafy greens, dairy, sardines, salmon, green peas, baked beans, oranges and tofu (with calcium an issue is absorption and we need vitamin D to absorb it properly so try and get 10-15 minutes of sunshine each day to give you your daily vitamin D dose)

As we mentioned above, breastfeeding mums also should be careful about supplements that aid weight loss as some contain products that can make your baby sick when passed through the milk.

The ones to be aware of are phentermine, aloe vera, caffeine, kelp, high doses of chromium and phenylpropanolamine (an ingredient in dexatrim and acutrim). Also, many weight loss supplements also contain ephedrine which is a substance that increases metabolic rate and has been associated with severe increase in blood pressure, palpitations, heart arrhythmias, and seizures – so steer clear of these when breastfeeding.

If you are wanting to lose weight when breastfeeding then look at the a safe weight loss plan such as the Lose Baby Weight plans that are safe in breastfeeding and have been designed to help mums boost their supply and get all the nutrients their body needs.

Specific foods which may cause problems when breastfeeding
There are no hard and fast rules about what a mum shouldn’t eat when nursing their baby – other than the supplements mentioned above and consuming too much alcohol (if you do choose to have a drink alcohol will be in your breastmilk 30–60 minutes after you start drinking so you should plan ahead with feeding).

However there are a few foods which have been shown to cause upset in babies – and can be in the form of sickness, eczema, colic, trouble sleeping and irritability. However, each and every baby is very different and what may cause a reaction in one baby will have no affect at all in another and as such you should monitor yours to see how they reacts to certain foods and contact your Doctor if you are concerned about any reaction. A common list of foods listed by mums and Doctors which are more likely to cause some kind of reaction with your baby:

• Milk, dairy, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and spicy foods have been linked to colic
• Too much caffeine may make your baby restless
• Eggs and peanuts have been shown to be linked to allergies in babies

If you are concerned about your baby being allergic to any foods then we suggest you speak to your Doctor

This article was written by Rhian Allen, Founder of Lose Baby Weight and The Healthy Mummy. For more motivation, advice, recipes and exercise plans visit http://www.losebabyweight.com.au and for daily motivation join the Lose Baby Weight Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/losebabyweight.com.au