Ask the Expert: What Foods and Drinks Should I Avoid When Breast-Feeding?

When women begin breast-feeding, many consider how their diets will affect the health of the baby. Advance practice registered nurse of Lactation Services of Connecticut, Lorna C. Aliperti, has been a lactation consultant for more than 10 years and shares answers to the most common diet questions for women who are breast-feeding.

How careful do you have to be about your diet to protect the health of your breastfed baby? The answer is—less than you might think. The quality of your diet has little influence on the milk you produce. Nonetheless, if you’re like most moms, you still worry about how what you eat affects your milk and your baby, and here are answers to some of the questions I hear most.    

Do some moms make milk that isn’t rich enough for their baby?
Breastmilk averages approximately 22 calories per ounce, and this is not influenced by diet. A baby’s weight gain is only dependent on the amount of breastmilk she drinks—not anything about mom’s diet or the quality of her milk.

What about vitamins?
Vitamin supplements are not necessary for breast-feeding mothers, although many women continue to take their prenatal vitamin while nursing. This is more for the mom’s health than the baby’s, as levels of most nutrients are maintained in mom’s milk at expense of her nutritional status if needed.

Some oil soluble vitamins can concentrate in mom’s milk and adversely affect her baby, so mega supplementation is not safe. Strict vegans, who eat no animal products, need to be sure they get adequate amounts of vitamin B12 from supplements or fortified foods. 

What foods help me make more milk?
Many cultures have foods to help milk supply that are traditionally given to new moms.  There is almost no research in this area, and one mom’s (maybe yours?) opinion is as good as the next. In the U.S., oatmeal is a popular recommendation. There is a recipe for lactation cookies which have oatmeal, brewer’s yeast and flaxseed as ingredients.   They certainly taste good and can’t hurt.

Will breast-feeding help me burn calories?
Breastfeeding does help moms lose weight — you use approximately 500 extra calories a day producing milk. Experts suggest waiting two months after giving birth to start dieting, to aim for weight loss of not more than a pound or two a week and not to go below 1500 to 1800 calories a day. Before the two-month mark, there’s never any harm in sticking to healthy foods — fruit instead of pastry, etc., which will lower your calorie intake.

What about alcohol and coffee?
Occasionally having wine, beer, or other alcoholic beverage is considered safe while you’re breast-feeding. Try to allow 2 to 3 hours for each drink to clear from your milk.  Nursing before you have a drink works out well. One to two cups of coffee a day are generally tolerated by most babies.

How much water should I drink?
Even though it is commonly believed that water intake influences milk production, research has failed to demonstrate this effect. Drink when you’re thirsty. Have a glass or bottle of water when you feed your baby. Many moms find they get thirsty once they’ve started nursing, so having it ready can help. Your urine is a good indicator of whether you’re getting enough fluid—it should be light colored.  If it’s dark or concentrated, you’re not drinking enough water.