The importance of nutrition when breastfeeding
It’s important to have a well balanced nutritious diet after pregnancy to give your baby the nutrients they need and you the energy to keep up with them. When breastfeeding, the nutrients and energy you consume get passed to your baby, which makes breastfeeding a tiring but very important activity! Besides the energy needed for breastfeeding, a lot of energy is needed to take care of your new baby and for healing after the delivery.
How many extra kilojoules do you need when breastfeeding?
Breastfeeding burns lots of your energy. Just producing breast milk uses a large chunk of that energy and can be influenced by a wide variety of factors including the stage of breastfeeding, how much breast milk you are giving your baby, and what your physical activity levels are. This means that making just one recommendation for energy intake for mothers is not going to work – all women are uniquely different, and that’s a beautiful thing!
As a guide however, the average daily energy requirement for a woman aged between 19 and 30 years, with a weight of 61kg will range from 8100 kJ (sedentary) to 10500 kJ (moderately active). When you are breastfeeding, an additional 2000 - 2100kJ per day is needed. That’s a 25 – 30 percent increase in energy intake, assuming that you will be breastfeeding for the first six months after delivering and continue complementary breast feeding after that. This also depends on whether your physical activity levels are kept at the same rate. Keep in mind though that as well as the added energy you’ll get from food, some of your energy can also come from the extra layers you stored during pregnancy.
Once your baby starts to move to solids, you can begin to move towards returning to your pre-pregnancy calorie levels.
Stick to a nutritionally balanced diet
In addition to having an increased need for energy during breastfeeding, you will need to increase your intake of most nutrients above the normal range for non-breastfeeding women, so your baby will get all the goodness they need to grow healthy and happy
The following recommendations for breastfeeding mums are based on the New Zealand Food and Nutrition Guideline Statements for Healthy Adults. It states that you should sustain a healthy weight by eating well and being physically active every day.
It’s great if you can eat a variety of wholesome foods from the four food groups daily. You should aim to eat plenty of vegetables and fruit, eat lots of breads and cereals (preferably wholegrain), have milk and milk products but preferably the reduced or low-fat options, and include lean meat, poultry and fish as well as eggs, nuts, seeds or legumes.
When you choose prepared or pre-prepared food, make sure it contains as little added fat as possible, especially saturated fat, and that it is not loaded with salt. If you do like to reach for the salt shaker, make sure you use iodised salt. Your choices should also lean towards foods with little or no added sugar and a limited intake of high-sugar foods.
When you purchase, prepare, cook and store food, make sure that you are following safe food handling procedures. Drinking plenty of water is particularly important, and especially so for breastfeeding mums.
Some nutrients that need special consideration in your diet while breastfeeding:
Protein
The main reasons for including protein in your diet are for growth and the repair and maintenance of cells. Breast milk is naturally protein-rich to build your baby’s new body. So, if you’re breastfeeding you will need additional protein to provide for that. The Recommended Daily intake for breastfeeding women over 19 years is between 67g per day from good sources of protein including meat, fish and poultry as well as eggs, dairy and legumes (beans, soy and pulses). Young breastfeeding mums (aged 14–18 years) will need about 63 g per day.
Calcium
Another important mineral during breastfeeding is calcium. For your baby to grow healthy teeth and bones they depend on a good supply of calcium. Try to include 3 to 4 serves of milk or other dairy products such as cheese or yoghurt in your daily diet. If you don’t react well to dairy products, an alternative is soy milk with added calcium. The Ministry of Health recommends a total of 1000mg/day for breastfeeding mums older than 19 years of age and 1300 mg for breastfeeding mums aged 14 to 18 years of age.
Iron
Mums may find that their iron stores can run low when they have young babies. But, in general, the iron requirements of a breastfeeding mum are actually lower than for non-breastfeeding women and during pregnancy. Despite this you still need to make sure that you include iron-rich foods in your daily diet because of its important role in forming of red blood cells and building your natural immunity. There are two forms of dietary iron: haem and non-haem iron. You can get haem iron from animal foods such as red meat, poultry and fish. Iron in plant foods such as lentils, green leafy vegetables, nuts, dried fruit, wholegrain bread and beans are called non-haem iron. Haem iron is absorbed better than non-haem iron, and by including vitamin C-rich foods with your iron-rich foods you’ll help boost its absorption. However, try not to drink your cup of tea with iron-rich meals as this will reduce the absorption of the iron.
Iodine
When breastfeeding, you’ll need a good supply of iodine to assist the thyroid hormones in your baby’s growing body to play their part in promoting normal growth and development. Good sources of iodine include seafood, vegetables and milk. When using salt in your cooking, make sure that it is iodised salt.
Many types of bread are also fortified with iodine, and that will provide sufficient amounts of iodine to most people. However, it will not be enough for many breastfeeding women who may require an iodine supplement. You should ask your doctor or health care professional regarding your individual dietary needs. To read more about fortified foods visit Food Standard Australia New Zealand.
Zinc
Zinc is a vital mineral found in foods such as lean meat, legumes, nuts, cereal, milk and seafood. This mineral is involved in healing wounds and helps proteins do what they have to do. Zinc is vitally important for developing your baby’s growth, immunity and senses. Your zinc requirements increase when you’re breastfeeding, and even more so for teenage mums who are breastfeeding, and who are still growing themselves. So having a diet including the above foods is necessary.
Other minerals benefitting your immune system include selenium, chromium, copper and possibly manganese.
Vitamin A
Vitamin A plays an important role in your baby’s health while breastfeeding because it promotes normal growth, and is especially involved in developing vision, reproduction and healthy immune function. Include foods such as milk, cheese and oily fish along with yellow, orange or dark green coloured fruit and vegetables to get all the Vitatmin A you’ll need to keep your baby healthy.
B Vitamins
When you are breastfeeding your baby only some B vitamins are transferred into the breastmilk, so to give your body the energy it needs to produce breast milk, additional B vitamins are required.
Thiamin
Thiamin is essential for breaking down carbohydrate, protein and fat in your diet so they’ll produce energy for your baby in your breast milk. It’s also important for your heart and nerve system to function properly. To get your thiamine, include foods such as red meat, pork, wholegrains, brown rice, yeast extract, pulses, nuts and seeds in your daily diet.
Riboflavin
Vitamin B2, otherwise known as Riboflavin helps to release the energy from carbohydrate, fat and protein sources so you make great breastmilk for baby. Good dietary sources of riboflavin include dairy products, eggs, meats as well as cereals, almonds and yeast extract. Green leafy vegetables also contain some.
Niacin
Vitamin B3, otherwise known as Niacin, also helps your body release energy from fats and proteins to make good breast milk. Good dietary sources of niacin are red meat, poultry, fish and nuts, but potatoes, pasta and yeast extract also contain some of this vitamin. You might also want to look out for foods that are fortified with niacin so you get your daily needs.
Pyridoxine
This vitamin (B6) plays an important role in the formation of red blood cells and is important for metabolising protein and keeps your body’s immune function normal. The main foods containing vitamin B6 are muscle and organ meats (such as liver and kidneys) fish, poultry, wholegrains, peas and beans.
Vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 is normally involved in the metabolism of every cell in the body. Be sure to include food sources of vitamin B12 because when you are breastfeeding your requirement for this vitamin is slightly higher. Foods from animal origins – meat and dairy – are the main sources of vitamin B12, so vegetarian or vegan mums may have to supplement their diets with vitamin B12 while breastfeeding as stores of this vitamin in a baby of a vegan mum are low at birth and breast milk may supply only very small amounts. A vitamin B 12 supplement should be discussed with your doctor.
Folate
Folate, or folic acid, is a very important vitamin needed for your baby’s growth and development. Folic acid also plays a key role in immune system development and maintenance. Breastfeeding mums need on average about 500 μg of dietary folate equivalents per day (MoH 2006). By eating plenty of green leafy vegetables, wholegrains, peas, nuts, avocado and yeast extract you can be sure of a good supply of folate for your baby. Bread manufacturers in New Zealand have indicated that they will voluntarily increase the range of breads that have added folic acid, and the food labels will reflect this.
Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid)
Breastfeeding mums need on average about 80 - 85 mg of vitamin C daily, depending on age. Vitamin C is vital for the body because it acts as an antioxidant, while white blood cells are an important component of your immune system. When you are breastfeeding, you will need to meet your own needs for vitamin C as well as the needs of your baby so be sure to include good sources of vitamin C in your diet, including citrus fruit (eg. oranges, mandarins, lemons), kiwifruit, capsicum and tomatoes.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D plays a role in the maintenance of your immune system, and works with calcium to give you and your baby healthy teeth and bones as well as helping to maintain healthy skin and muscle strength. When your skin is exposed to sunlight, it produces vitamin D. When breastfeeding you will not need additional vitamin D unless you do not get adequate exposure to sunlight. However, if for any reason you are a mum with a baby with limited exposure to sunlight, a supplemental intake while breastfeeding of 10μg/day would not be excessive. It’s worth knowing too that there are very few foods which contain significant quantities of vitamin D. In New Zealand, fortification of margarine or milk products with vitamin D is not mandated. However, since 1996, voluntary fortification of margarine, fat spreads and their reduced fat equivalents has been permitted.
Omega 3 Fatty Acids
Docosahexanoic acid (DHA) is one of the main omega 3 fatty acids found in breastmilk and known to aid in the development of the brain and retina. Good sources include oily fish (such as mackerel, salmon, eel, sardines and tuna), green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds and oils such as soybean, canola, flaxseed and walnut oils. As well as providing your baby with benefits, omega 3 fatty acids are also good for your health providing you with a rich source of vitamins and minerals.
Fluid
When you are breastfeeding, you will probably notice that you feel thirsty more often than usual. You will need to drink about nine glasses of water or other fluid per day to replace those that you gave to breastfeeding your baby. Remember that breast milk consists of 87% water and that the average amount of milk produced during the first six months of breastfeeding is 3 cups a day. Also, if you are living and working in extremely hot climates you may need to increase your fluid intake even more to help ensure adequate hydration, especially if you are very active.
It is a good idea to drink fluids throughout the day but you might want to drink just before every breastfeed to make sure that you are adequately hydrated. You best choice is water but milk and juice can also be included. Fluids that need special consideration include caffeine-containing and alcoholic drinks.
Eating a nutritionally well balanced diet will give your baby all the energy and nutrients they need to grow, and all you need to keep up with them. And don’t forget that it’s OK to still have the odd treat!
For more information on anything to do with vitamin needs, don’t hesitate to contact our team of experts on the Kariclub Advisory Service.