Congratulations, new mommy ! You have become a new parent and have chosen to breastfeed your child. Regulating sleep , wake up, feeding and poop cycles of the child becomes the order of the day and self care and nourishment for the mommy sometimes takes a backseat.
Your body is going through a lot of hormonal changes and a lot of nourishment that you consume goes into producing milk. It is essential that you take care of yourself , and give your body the essential nourishment that has enough of the following nutrients - iron,calcium, magnesium , zinc ,choline ,B vitamins along with A and D.
Healthy fats
Easiest way to get these in is to keep a hand-full of mixed nuts in your vicinity with a bowl. Making sure that you are having a variety of nuts from sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, almonds and walnuts . Ghee or coconut oil can also be used for cooking .
2. Dates
Dates are Filled with iron and folate , you can do a date balls . Add nuts to it and some healthy fats like nut butter and sesame seeds. add some prunes, and figs to the mixture
3. Vitamin -C
Oranges , Grapes and Spinach are a good source of vitamin C. You can either make a greens salad , dressing or a juice with some lemon,gooseberry , spinach and green apple or a soup enriched with greens. Vitamin C helps in absorption of Iron rich foods and builds immunity.
4 Gond
A warming food used to increase strength , build calcium and great for improving milk quality in new mothers. Often called lubricating . Today there are many suppliers who make readymade Gond ladoos , to save the new mothers trouble.
5 Garlic
Again great for increasing milk production , can be had in the form of a chutney,raw or cooked with a protein of choice .
The other thing to keep in mind is to make sure that you are eating a variety of colours of fruits and vegetables everyday . Most cultures have fixed dishes to be had post partum- from the birthday soup in South Korea, the garlic curry in Tamil Nadu. One thing in common is that they have warming and soothing qualities and are filled with immunity boosting properties. If you are short on time - make a soup with everything nourishing and add all the colours in the rainbow to it . Snack on bowls of fruit and don't go long periods without eating .
Do take out time to chew and eat slowly. When you are eating and chewing well , it will avoid bloating and gas from forming in your body . Most of all don't be shy in asking for help or hiring help for the initial few months .
At the end of the day , you are learning the ropes on how to best care for the new life you have in your hands . Should you not get enough milk , be open to looking at various options that are best for your baby and for your mental health. A well fed mumma will have more energy to give attention to work towards a happy, rested and well-fed baby .
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