how long do you need to keep snacking when you're breastfeeding?

[muslimah28]

everything i heard, read, saw when i was pregnant and just had ds said to have a snack with every breastfeed. i stopped doing this when he was about 3 months old, and was down to about one snack a day now but which many days i can miss now if i want to. does this matter? ds is 7.5 mo, he's BLW and hasn't dropped any feeds yet.

i want to lose weight but know i can't diet while breastfeeding so thought cutting out snacks would at least be a step in the right direction. i've not been one of those lucky ones they tell you about that lose the weight so much more quickly because they're breastfeeding

Just eat if and when you are hungry! Why would you need a regimented snack routine?

the midwives and breastfeeding counsellors said to have a snack with every feed, to make sure you're taking in extra calories for the demands on your body. so i guess my question is at this stage with a 7.5 mo do i still need to be aware of having a high calorie intake?

thanks

You can diet while bf .

No need to snack every bf, bizarre advice . Eat if you're hungry, don't if you're not. Choose healthy food, drink as much water as your thirst tells you to, eat sensible portion sizes and do some exercise. Simples .

No of course not, and if you eat to your appetite you will take in enough calories. I suspect this is the reason you haven't found breastfeeding to help you lose weight!

thanks! maybe thats where i went wrong...

You don't need a high calorie diet! If you eat normally then you should lose weight though, but I'm starting a new year diet as I have been eating for two

Bf uses few extra calories. Just as in pregnancy your body prioritises the baby, so what you eat largely doesn't affect the quality of the milk (certainly not in calorie terms -eating 'good' fats like fish oils rather than double cream does positively affect the balance of fat in the milk fir example).

Maybe have a look at this?

heremeroar do you know by any chance which diets are safe while bf?

They do come out with some bizarre advice - a friend of mine was told she Must get up and eat a bowl of cereal at 3 am while she was breastfeeding.

Any diet that maintains a sensible nutrient balance and doesn't cause dramatic weight loss should be fine . Cutting out whole food groups or crash dieting aren't really sensible for anyone anyway.

Kellymom on dieting

thank you. some sensible advice on kellymom. dieting is a whole new area for me, i've lived all my life being a svelt size 6-8 and then i just ballooned when i got pregnant!

I've been a breastfeeding counsellor for a long time and have never heard of anyone being advised to snack at every feed - blimey!

I ate cake with most breastfeeds with DS1. I put on a lot of weight

I ate a lot in the 1st few months of bf-ing DS1, as I was starving, & then my appetite settled down and I ate normally. I put on weight to begin with, then it all gradually came off (& some) by the time DS1 was 12 months, so don't stress it about shifting the weight, although I second what everyone else has said: you only need to eat as much as your body/appretite demands. Listen to your body - you really don't need the extra snacks at this stage.

Btw, bf-ing & eating normally really does shift the weight, as once I stopped bf-ing at 12 months, I really noticed the weight creeping back on... bah. Personally, I find diets a waste of time - eat normally & if you want to shift the weight quicker, get some exercise. Works every time for me!

I snacked through the first 4 months of bf ds and put on weight rather than lost it (and he was a monster sized grower!) I dieted gently from 8 weeks with the next 2 lo's, bfing all the way and it made no difference to my breastmilk but lots to my waistline. The MW is talking cobblers (sorry!)

am very now about listening to such advice given the responses on here. i normally am so sensible about questioning silly advice too!

it makes sense now, i was snacking more than i needed to, plus was in bed rest for weeks because of serious post natal complications....eating plus inactivity, not a good combination...

My MW also told me to eat at each feed! I've been force feeding cereal, toast, jacket potatoes and stressing if i miss a snack! I'll relax and just eat normally now i think!

Yup, eat if you're hungry, drink if you're thirsty. No need to forcefeed yourself.

As long as you're not (literally) starving (and I mean literally starving, like wasting away etc etc) your milk will be absolutely fine.

I snack everytime time I breastfeed and now weight 28 stone. I had too many pizzas.

Im on Weightwatchers. They give you a load more points to eat if you are breastfeeding. Today is the first day Ive been able to eat them all.

I dont understand where you would put the snack. I have a glass of water, flannel, muslin, cushion, DH all within reach. I would have to balance the snack on the DDs head.

I suspect the reason they give this advice is for those early days where you are in a bit of a sleepless haze and apparently some people forget to eat/don't have time to eat. Personally I never had this problem as I was starving.

I actually have to diet a lot and exercise to lose weight while bf. I did this with dc1 and lost the weight. With dc2 I thought I wouldn't bother and maybe it would come off but slowly. Have been eating normally and exercising but have lost nothing in 4.5 months. So it doesn't work for everyone! Oh and also last time i lost weight when I stopped bf without trying.

God, if I had a snack every time I breastfed either of my babies, I'd be the size of a house! I just eat when I'm hungry.

I was told this too - mw told me to make sure I ate an extra 500 calories a day while breastfeeding. 500 calories! I was really stressed about it and would worry if I wasn't eating every couple of hours, then I read The Politics of Breastfeeding and realised that if women in famines can feed their babies properly, I was probably fine on my Western diet I'm now eating normally and DS is still gaining weight and tracking the 75th centile, so he's obviously getting enough. Some midwives need re-educating about breastfeeding!

I ate loads each time (as was hungry all the time & had no willpower) and put on lots of weight.

Have now stopped (mainly as am back at work, and hate pumping) and am dieting and its coming off, but if I had the willpower would have dieted earlier.

I think each oz of breast milk takes 20 calories to make, so 24oz x 20 is roughtly the 500 calories the midwive suggested - just if you eat it then the calories will come from the extra food and not from your fat stores.