FollowFoods to Avoid While Breastfeeding
You have just spent your entire pregnancy worrying about the foods and drinks that went into your body. This was done to ensure your baby was developing healthy. Now that baby is born, you may be breastfeeding. Therefore it is important that you know which foods to avoid while breastfeeding to make sure your baby stays healthy and grows strong. Read more to find out!
Caffeine– If you drink coffee, tea, soda or other things that contain caffeine, your baby cannot excrete it like we can as adults. Because of this, your baby may not only get cranky but may have troubles falling asleep. If you must have some caffeine, drink it in moderation and do so right after you are done a nursing session so the caffeine will have a few hours to be removed from your system.
Alcohol– Alcohol and breastfeeding has been a topic of debate in the medical community for quite some time. Some experts will tell you that one alcoholic drink is safe in the breast milk while others will tell you to avoid alcohol completely. The American Council on Exercise says you can breastfeed three hours after drinking alcohol while the United States Department of Agriculture says to wait four hours.
Citrus– You may think that eating citrus fruit or drinking orange juice will provide you with your Vitamin C needs. However, there are some babies that are highly sensitive to Vitamin C because of the fact it is very acidic. This acid can irritate the baby’s gastrointestinal system. You should avoid anything with citrus in it such as oranges, limes, lemons and grapefruits.
Spicy Foods– While spices may add flavor to your food, you want to avoid them when breastfeeding. If you eat spicy foods and then breastfeed, you will find that your baby may be a bit fussy for a few hours afterwards.
Garlic– There are many babies that seem to be very sensitive to garlic. Garlic can significantly change the way that your breast milk tastes. It is for this reason that you may find your baby refuses breast milk altogether if you consume garlic.
Fish– You don’t have to avoid all types of fish when you are breastfeeding. However, you do need to stay away from fish that is high in mercury. This is because mercury can get into your breast milk and is not good for the baby at all. Fish that are the highest in mercury levels include King Mackerel, Swordfish and Shark.
It should be noted that not all babies will have a negative reaction to what their moms eat or drink while breastfeeding. This, of course, may be due to the amount of time that lapses before the breastfeeding session commences. Babies that are colicky or have reflux may or may not have a reaction to what their mothers have ingested. Each food should be introduced slowly into the diet or eaten in moderation in order to determine what, if anything, is causing a reaction.
