Don’t Eat, Don’t Drink and Don’t Be Merry

December 6th, 2008

I been careful about what eat while I’ve been breastfeeding, but it is starting to wear me down a little. I’ve been fine with it most of the way along the line, it’s not like I used to go out drinking my face off every night anyways, but recently I’ve had a bit of a craving for some (by which I mean ‘a lot’) of the bad stuff and occasionally had stuff I’ve been avoiding.

A lot of women find that they can eat whatever they may like during breast feeding. Even though it’s true that some intensley favored foods can change the taste of your milk, many babies seem to enjoy the varieties of breast milk flavors. Occasionally, the babies may get cranky at the breast after I’ve had certain foods. If you notice this happening, simply avoid that particular food.

The most common offenders during breast feeding include chocolate, spices, citrus fruits, garlic, chili, lime, gassy vegetables, and fruits with laxative type effects, such as prunes and cherries.

You can have a cup or two of coffee a day, although too much caffeine can interfere with your baby’s sleep and even make him or her cranky. Keep in mind, caffeine is found in many soda’s, tea, and even over the counter type medicine as well.

It’s fine to have an alcoholic drinks every now and the, although having more than one can raise your blood alcohol level, putting the alcohol into your breast milk.

If you are planning to have more than one drink at a time, it’s best to wait two hours or more per drink before you resume any type of nursing or breast feeding. There is no need to pump and dump unless your breasts are full and its time to feed your baby. While breast feeding, any type of heavy drinking should be avoided.

So I think I’m going to go a little easier on myself and eat a bit more of the stuff I fancy.

Is It Worth It?

July 6th, 2008

Breast feeding two kids can be incredibly tiring. Sometimes I do have to wonder if it’s worth the bother. So I decided to take a quick look at the benefits of breast feeding in this post to give myself a bit of a boost in the motivation department (and hopefully do the same for you as well).

Once you’ve given birth, breast feeding is the single most important thing you can do to protect your baby and help to promote good health. Best of all, breast feeding is free.

Along with saving you money on HMR (Human Milk Replacement), breast feeding can also help you to keep your medical bills down. Babies that are fed with formula get sicker more often and more seriously than babies that are breast fed They also have more ear infections, respiratory infections, and other problems.

This can be even more true if your family has had a history of allergies. When a baby is breast fed, the antibodies pass on from the mother to the baby, helping to protect against illness and allergies. As the baby’s system matures, his body will begin to make it’s own antibodies, and he’ll be more equipped to handle sensitivities of food.

Sucking on the breast will also help with the development or jaw alignment and the development of the cheekbone. For this very reason, there is less of the need for costly orthodontic work when the child gets older.

Unlike formula, breast milk is always ready, always available, convenient, and always the right temperature for feeding. Plus, it contains all of the vitamins and minerals your growing baby needs, saving you a lot of money.

Breast feeding also offers many benefits for the mom as well. The baby sucking at the breast will cause contractions right after birth, leading to less bleeding for the mom, and helping her uterus to it’s shape before pregnancy much faster.

So I think there are some great reasons to go on breast feeding - despite any difficulties I may be having. It may be hard at times, but with reasons like this it has to be worth the effort.