question about breast feeding

[Amberc]

are there any restrictions as to what you can and can't eat when breastfeeding as there are when preggers? I feel like I am going to go mad if I don't eat baked camembert soon and have planned a feast of toxicity (well cheese, pate etc) as soon as I have given birth (will be in my labour bag with a bag of champers). No idea and can' find any info on the net.

Curry's not a good idea. Nor is alcohol. I'm not sure about the cheese. Best to check with your midwife.

You can eat anything when bfeeding. Just go easy on the alcohol and don't do drugs (even prescribed).

I'm sure someone better informed will come along but, personally, I just watched the alcohol. Some strong tasting foods will make your milk taste funny apparently, but my DS never complained.

Curry is fine, I found it actually helped with my milk supply (due to the spices). You can eat anything, the more variety the better so that your baby gets the benefits of a range of flavours

Gave ds green poop. Was not nice.

amberc - i thought you could have unpasturised cheese as long as it was cooked. with both pregnancies i have eaten deep-fried brie and blue-cheese sauces. surely the cooking kills any bacteria???

curry and spicy stuff must be ok or how would indian mothers manage?

so many myths about breastfeeding

www.kellymom.com and hunker's blog, how breastfeeding works is good , will try to link

Curry was fine for me. (IIRC it's fenugreek that is supposed to increase milk supply, isn't it?)

Cheese is not a problem.

Most foods are fine was told to stay away from onions as that can cause baby to get colic.Cheeses are fine i was the same could not wait to eat pate and brie..

Cheese is fine.
Pate is fine.
Alcohol in moderation is fine.
Curry is fine (although your baby may notice the change in milk and might complain!)

Essentially you can eat whatever you like and hopefully your cosmopolitan tastes will be passed down to your baby and refine their palate

And I think Brangelina's joking, but just to clarify! Prescription drugs are fine as long as your physician knows you are bfing and has double-checked the recommendations - it's also worth telling the pharmacist as they are sometimes more clued up than the doctor. DON'T be afraid to take essential medication and things like paracetamol if you are in pain. It's awful when people suffer like crazy and refuse to take perfectly safe medication because they are ignorant about what's safe and what's not.

should add, I'm not a professional! Hopefully someone "proper" will come along and give chapter and verse.

My last post was just what I've always been told (and the curry one is based on personal experience - I eat fairly spicy food and DS complained the first few times but didn't bat an eyelid after the first few weeks)

here is what kellymom has to say about "what a nursing mother can eat"

I forgot to say that some people cut out peanuts if they are worried about allergies.

You can eat what you like.
Avoid over-the-counter drugs unless discussed with your doc and go easy on booze in the hours before a feed.

I found brocolli and cauliflower gave dd really bad skits, other than that, I think cheese is fine

Good Luck

Yes, I was joking about the drugs, but as TYV says you do need the tell the doctor and pharmacist that you're bfeeding, and possibly check on the internet too (I think there's a site though can't remember it atm).

My DD loved the curries, they were her fave food when weaned so she must have appreciated the curried milk. Do bear in mind that in many parts of the world, including those with a fiery cuisine, no one modifies their diet when bfeeding yet their babies are fine.

I didn't limit my diet at all when I was breast feeding - just didn't get too pissed........

If you have any allergies in the family though, it may be worth steering clear of those for a bit.

Oh and be prepared to drink gallons of water. Bfing makes you really thirsty.

I have been bf for five years and have never cut out anything
just eat your normal diet
I never drink too much but anyway only a tiny amount passes into the bm
best of luck

Lyra - i used to take a 2 litre bottle of water up to bed with me!!

AFAIK - the danger of blue cheese etc is listeria, so if you heat the product to 50c it's safe, because listeria dies at that temperature. lulu - have you heard this?

when ds was born everyone bought me stinky cheese and pate for a baby welcoming pressie! was fab till my stupid hv told me it'd give my ds wind - utter tosh! and he loves cheese now, he'd live on Babybel if he could!

good luck!

curry gave ds green projectile poo!

all over the nurse. lol

My understanding of the problem with the unpasturised cheeses is the risk of listeria as theUrbandryad mentions. In pregnancy this can cause complications to foetus, however when breastfeeding, if you were unlucky enough to catch listeria, it could not be passed on to baby through the breastmilk. I know a few people who just don't eat unpasturised cheeses at all, ever, because of this, but everyone can decide where they want to draw the line when it comes to this type of risk.

I breastfed for 15 months and there wasnt really anything I avoided. I didnt drink alcohol at the start when he was tiny but as he got older and fed less often I had the odd glass of wine.

Its a case of trial and error to see if any foods disagree with them - sometimes the most bizarre things can make them a bit windy but quite often they are fine. DS for example didnt like me eating strawberries!

I too was so looking forward to brie etc after the birth then when i actually ate it wasnt that fussed! Think I had built it up to be an absolute wonderfood in my denial of it, lol.

xx

Some babies react 2 cafeine, too. They metabolise it very slowly until a few months old.
Wide awake baby at 3am is no fun.
I can drink tea 2 the eyeballs when pregnant but it seems 2 make my babes grumpy, so I have very little caffeine 0-8 months post-partum.
A big glass of wine every other night is my mantra, tho'!
Best avoid aspirin, too. Tiny risk of Reyes syndrome.