If you’ve mentioned to a friend or family member that your new breastfeeding baby is fussy, you may hear something like: “well, what are you eating?”
Eating and breastfeeding, what’s a parent to do??
Research shows that the food we eat does not affect a baby’s behavior. Breastfeeding mothers and parents from all over the world eat a variety of starches, spices and other foods that are often rumored to cause our babies gas and discomfort. Good news: it appears that this is not the case!
Parents should focus on making healthy choices to help fuel milk production. Choose a variety of protein-rich foods, as well as whole grains such as fruits and vegetables. Mostly, you will want to eat wholesome, healthy and yummy food. When asked specifically what to eat, Tipper Gallagher, IBCLC, says, “You should eat 3 things: foods you like, foods you can eat with one hand, and food someone else prepares for you.” We think that sounds like a great plan!
Now we know what foods we should eat, but what foods should we avoid? “Foods you don’t like, and foods you don’t want to eat.” Well that seems pretty simple.
All that being said, some babies’ ARE allergic to a certain food protein. When that is the case, the biggest culprit is typically dairy and soy. Eliminating those foods from the breastfeeding parents’ diet may be the best solution in these scenarios, but this should not be done until your baby is diagnosed with an allergy by his or her pediatrician.
How do you know if your baby may have on of these food protein allergies? According to Kelly Mom,
“Most infant fussiness is normal for a young baby, and is not related to foods in mom’s diet. If your baby is sensitive to something you are eating, you will most likely notice other symptoms in addition to fussiness, such as excessive spitting up or vomiting, colic, rash or persistent congestion. Fussiness that is not accompanied by other symptoms and calms with more frequent nursing is probably not food-related.”
If you’re breastfeeding baby is experiencing any of these symptoms, please consult your pediatrician.
For additinoal information on this topic, check out our YouTube video.
Leave a Reply