Nursing moms are supposed to get extra calories. Any experienced momma or lactation professional will tell you that. Even WeightWatchers has a plan designed to provide extra calories for nursing moms.
It sounds easy, but there is a little bit more to it than indulging in twinkies, at least for the low-supply mommies! We need all the help we can get, so paying extra attention to our diets can give us a little extra umph right when we need it most. I'm pleased to tell you that "watching our diets" doesn't have to be difficult!
I'm not telling you to count calories!
I'm not telling you to reduce fat!
I'm not suggesting another pill to pop!
I'm saying to figure out which lactogenic foods you like, and then work them into your diet every single chance you get! Woohoo!
I want to give a shout out here to Hilary Jacobson who wrote an excellent book titled "Mother Food" that totally rocked my world. I'm not going to give away all the information in her book - because there is no way I could ever do that even if I wanted to. Mother Food is packed full of information about what foods help with milk production, why and how they work, and even historical information about how these foods have been used by cultures around the world. If you are a nursing mom who needs to increase milk supply, buy this book. You won't regret it. It's one of my top three favorite breast-feeding books.
OK, on to the good stuff. What foods are going to help you make more milk?
Here are just some of them, the ones that are my favorites:
- Malt (Malt-O-Meal, Malted Milk) - Try to eat some malt-o-meal or oatmeal (see below) every day. I add the malted milk powder to my coffee (chickory coffee see below), ice cream, and pretty much anything else I can hide it in. You may have heard that beer is good for supply. That's based on this same premise. While many people speak out against alcohol during lactation, I feel that's fodder for a different post. Suffice it to say, I and many of my friends have seen a little beer go a long way. Make sure it's dark, like Guiness. LLLI has a page with good information about the safety of beer while nursing.
- Beans (Chickpea, Mungbean, Lentil) -Try hummus, and add to soups!
- Root Veggies (Carrots, Beats, Yams) - These you can eat just like normal.
- Whole Grain (Oatmeal, Barley, Rice) - Yum. I eat the oatmeal like normal, and add barley and rice to soups. You can also work the oatmeal into lactation cookies or oatmeal bread! May moms also drink barley water to increase production.
- Leafies (Kale, Arugula, Spinach, Swiss chard, Chicory, Collard greens) - I prefer the Kale and Spinach, but listed the others for your benefit. You can eat them any way you want. I prefer my spinach in a calzone, Arugula in a salad, and Kale in soups!
- Yeast - You can take nutritional or brewers' yeast as a supplement, or you can add it to foods like lactation cookies! YUM! I will post some recipes soon.
- Nuts (Almond, Cashew, Macadamia) - Try to eat them raw, instead of roasted. Of course roasted is better than not at all. I prefer almonds, and I drink Almond milk every day (it comes in a yummy dark chocolate flavor).
- Spices (Dill, Caraway, Fennel, Basil, Marjoram, Turmeric, Garlic, Ginger, Anise) - I dump almost all of these into soups. I use many of them in spaghetti sauce, on roasted chicken, sprinkled on a salad, etc. Work them into your diet just like any other spice. One of my favorite ways to get galactogogues and lactogenic herbs is in a nice warm cup of tea! One word of caution, ginger is supposedly bad for mothers who have lost a lot of blood recently.
- Healthy Fats (Olive Oil, Chicken Stock) - It seems like all around the world wise old grandma's are giving new mommies soup. Often it's chicken soup! I don't know why, but this works. Home-made chicken soup, especially with rice (a whole grain!) helps my supply every time.
Happy cooking :)
Definitely going to check out this book! Thanks!
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