Nutritional Support for your Breastmilk

If you are a new mother getting support on breastfeeding is so important as initially it can feel alien, confusing and frustrating to do and therefore you need a midwife to show you how to latch your baby and not hurt yourself in the process. Latching can take some time to master. Look for support groups in your area too.

If you are worried in the first few days about milk flow and intake you can get a blood test monitor for your baby from Boots which plugs into your phone and gjves a nice graph on blood sugar levels. My baby had her levels monitored for the first 12hours. She had very little milk and mainly slept but her blood sugars were perfect which suggested she didn’t need feeding.

Breastmilk is such a great food to give to your baby because:

·        It’s free

·         It’s nutrient rich

·         It doesn’t upset your little ones tummy as much as bottle feed

·         It’s more convenient than bottle feeding and its prep time

·         It’s a natural antibiotic, I used it to clear baby sticky eye, by applying it to the tear ducts

·         If you are poorly you produce antibodies that pass across the milk to help your baby fight off what you have

As a mother with a newborn of 5lb 8 ounces I wanted to make sure I could get some chub onto her to get her nice and fighting fit. They said she would lose upto 10% body weight initially, she lost about 4% and was back at her birth weight within 2 days (this can take 10-14 days on average). I am sure a lot of this was down to my survival kit below that helped with the breastmilk flow:

Supplements:

Biocare Pregnancy and Lactation Multi Take a good multivitamin suitable for breastfeeding, this will help replace general nutrient levels such as iron which can be low causing tiredness from bloodloss in childbirth. Vitamin A and zinc which helps with healing. Selenium to cross the breastmilk to support babies thyroid for metabolism (thyroid function is one of the tests the doctors did with the heal prick test on your baby). A few days after birth your babies own thyroid should function independently, prior to this they have your hormones circulating the system to support them.

Solgar Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) taking 3.5grams per day should increase milk flow within 1-3 days. For some woman it can take upto two weeks. You will know that you are taking enough if your urine and sweat has a maple syrup smell to it.

Botanicals Raspberry leaf (Rubus idaeus) helps to tone your uterus back into shape and increases milk supply

Biocare Sea Plasma is more to support the circulation of lymphatic system to reduce risk of blockage and infection in the breast tissue. Sea plankton can also support the hormone prolactin which is produced to stimulate milk production.

Biocare Biomulsion Omegaplex contains omega 6 to increase your natural hormone synthesis, this is important to rebalance hormones to make you more relaxed, a more relaxed mum means more milk production. The omega 3 and 6 will also cross the breastmilk to support your baby brain development and give beautiful skin.  

Skincare

Lanolin get lots of it, and when you have got lots, get some more! This will save your nipples from getting sore cracked or hurting from any bruising

Foods to avoid and foods to enjoy

Eat healthy this will help with your sleep deprivation for  the next couple of months, also what you eat will affect your babies taste buds, this has been tested with breastfeeding mothers eating garlic and carrots and their infants when weaning having a preference to these flavours.

Avoid chocolate you will give your child that unwanted sweet tooth, soothe cravings with nuts and seeds with fruit instead which will be rich in nutrients for your milk and will give you a boost in energy

Start the day with oats by making a porridge or muesli, Oats help to replenish lost iron levels for milk flow. Oats also contain tryptophan which increases happy hormones. A happy mother has an easier ‘let down’ on her milk supply

Avoid dairy this can prove difficult for your baby to digest if any of the protein lactose from milk goes into the breastmilk. One sign of this is colic.

Neuners Organic Nursing tea Aniseed, fennel, verbena, caraway, (11%) fenugreek seeds this is caffeine free, caffeine is not advised in breastfeeding as it can affect your babies sleep.

Gluten Free Pasta Recipe for Lunch with the Girls

Gluten Free pasta lunch with the girls

Sometimes people feel a little lost when thinking of gluten free options for social gatherings, so I thought I would put up my recipe for luncheons with the girls. This is a new type of pasta dish that I have tried that is so easy to make, it was all ready and in my fridge within 10 mins and didn’t cost much to make. Especially as good health naturally were kind enough to send me a sample of their black bean fusilli pasta

Serves 3

Ingredients

 20 Large Black Olive deseeded and sliced

100g sundried tomatoes

20g of green olive pesto

150g of artichoke

50g peppadew peppers chopped

50g of capers soaked in brine

3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

Seasoned with black peppercorn to taste

2 tablespoons of lemon juice

125g organic black fusilli pasta

Recipe

·         Bring pasta to boil and leave to simmer for 5 mins

·         Rinse pasta with a little lemon juice

·         Stir in ingredients

·         Cover and put into fridge

·         Voila…one yummy dish for 3

Some Health benefits of meal:

Contains fats which are good for mind function and good for silky hair and soft smooth skin

Pasta is rich in fibre and protein which means I will be fuller for longer

The dish is full of nutrient rich foods, meaning my body can utilise the food to aid my body to function rather than it being stored as fat

The meal is gluten free making it less likely to make me bloated and uncomfortable win win.

Weightloss Tips

The festive season has passed and our waist size may have expanded slightly from all the treats we have snacked on. It’s now the New Year and with that comes plans for the new us, the pre-Christmas streamline version!

Here are some of our favourite weightloss tips: Get a blood glucose monitor These are great, you can buy them online or in Boots and they often link up with smartphones. You can take simple skin blood prick tests throughout the day to monitor your blood glucose levels so that you are eating when you need to. Sometimes you will think you need to eat, but your blood sugar is high, meaning the best you could do is fast at that time and go for a walk to get the metabolism going!     Avoid instant sugar hits ...such as chocolate.  Sugar is stored in all the wobbly bits such as the tummy and thighs. When you eat sugar, and it isn’t used up immediately for energy, such as when you exercise, your body can be in danger of going into hyperglycemia which can cause you to pass out. To prevent this, your body thinks ahead for when you may need some food and cleverly stores the sugar like a packed lunch in your fat cells ready for when you need a big surge of energy. Alas the energy surge is often not that frequent leaving you with lots of prepacked packed lunches to get through! Cinnamon is your new buddy that goes everywhere with you Carry this in your pocket and sprinkle a small amount on your food or in your drinks. This slows down sugar release into the blood stream keeping you feeling fuller for longer and less likely to gain fat. Chromium This little mineral is known to have the GTF (glucose tolerance factor) which means it regulates glucose in the blood after eating or when experiencing cravings, making it a popular ingredient to have when hungry or just after eating, to encourage satiety. Insoluble fibre   Fibre such as Konjac, alongside water, swells inside the gastrointestinal tract. The swelling makes the body feel full by triggering appetite suppressors. Get your Zzzs Sleeping and appetite can easily get confused. There is an appetite stimulator called ghrelin - think of it as the little hunger gremlin in your tummy which makes that rumbling noise. Ghrelin is stimulated by two things, hunger and sleep deprivation to encourage sleep, which can easily confuse you in to thinking you are hungry.