Breastfeeding women, like pregnant women, need to take special care with what they eat. Their bodies need fuel and nutrients to produce the food their babies need, and the babies' needs will come before those of the mothers. This means if a woman doesn't get enough of a particular vitamin or mineral in her diet for both the baby's needs and her needs, the amount that she does get will be used in the baby's milk, leaving her deficient in the vitamin, according to "Parents" magazine.
Calories
A breastfeeding diet should contain about 500 calories more than a woman's prepregnancy diet. This usually means consuming a diet that is at least 2,000 calories, according to Children's Hospital Boston. Consuming too few calories can result in diminished milk production, so strict low-calorie diets should wait at least a few months.
Foods
The foods eaten during a breastfeeding diet are similar to those of a pregnancy diet. However, some vitamin and mineral needs are increased, including those for calcium. What to Expect recommends a diet consisting of three servings of protein, five servings of foods containing calcium, at least one serving of iron-rich food and two of vitamin-C rich foods, at least three servings of green leafy or yellow vegetables and fruits and one serving of other vegetables and fruits, three servings of whole grains and eight glasses of water or other beverage without caffeine or alcohol. Continue taking prenatal vitamins.
Foods to Avoid
During breastfeeding there are fewer foods to avoid. Drinking alcohol in moderation is fine, but drink just one or two drinks right after breastfeeding so the alcohol doesn't end up in large amounts in the breast milk. Caffeine is also fine in moderation, though more than a couple cups of coffee or caffeinated soda might cause the baby to be jittery. Just watch to see if any foods seem to cause the baby distress, and avoid those foods, according to What to Expect.
Considerations
Nicotine can pass into breast milk, so smoking should be avoided or limited to under 10 cigarettes per day, according to Children's Hospital Boston. Otherwise the baby may become restless, have diarrhea, vomit or have a rapid heartbeat.
Should a woman consume too much alcohol, she should pump and dump that milk rather than feeding it to the baby.
Expert Insight
Planning healthy meals and preparing and freezing them before giving birth can make it easier to stick to a healthy breastfeeding diet after coming home from the hospital, suggests "Parents" magazine. Don't go on a diet until milk production is firmly established, and, when starting a diet, don't cut calories too drastically.
