As a new mother who just gave birth to a little hungry bundle of joy, eating a healthy nutritious diet is just as essential as it was when you were pregnant, especially, if you decide on breastfeeding your baby.
During breastfeeding, the food you eat directly can have an effect on the taste of your breast milk, and if your baby tastes something they don’t like, they may go on a nursing strike or have difficulty eating.
Luckily, in this article, we have a list of foods that make breast milk taste good you should try with your little one (and no, more sugar isn’t the answer). Read On…
What Food Should I Eat When Breastfeeding Baby?
According to The National Health Service a healthy diet when breastfeeding should include:
- Fruit And Vegetables: At least 5 portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables a day, including fresh, frozen, tinned, and dried fruit and vegetables, and no more than one 150ml glass of 100% unsweetened juice.
- Starchy foods: For example wholemeal bread, pasta, rice, and potatoes.
- Fiber: Lots of fiber (from wholemeal bread and pasta, breakfast cereals, rice, pulses such as beans and lentils, and fruit and vegetables). Some women after having a baby have bowel problems and/or constipation, and fiber helps with both of these.
- Protein: Such chicken, lean meat, fish, eggs, nuts, seeds, soy foods, and pulses – and preferably including 2 portions of fish a week.
- Dairy foods: like milk, cheese, and yogurt are highly recommended. These foods contain calcium and are a great source of protein (non-dairy sources of calcium suitable for vegans include tofu, brown bread, pulses, and dried fruit.
- Plenty of fluids: Have a drink next to you when you settle down to breastfeed your baby: water and skimmed or semi-skimmed milk are good alternatives.
- Seeds: Fennel or saunf is a common seed spice found in most Indian households. These seeds are known to have galactogenic properties, that is, they help in increasing breast milk production.
Read Also: What Happens If Baby Baby Drinks Spoiled Breast Milk?
Foods That Make Breast Milk Taste Good?
Liquorice
The flavor of liquorice, found in a wide variety of candies or sweets can be a quite strong one, is one that was shown to affect the taste of a mother’s milk during the day after she has taken it, says ABCNews.Go.Com.
Result shown that the Liquorice flavor peaked strongly in breast milk two hours after the capsule, as did the caraway seed flavor.”
Carrots
According to Romper.com reports of a study by Julie Menella, who conducted research on the topic “What’s orange and crunchy and when eaten by nursing mothers can affect their baby’s taste for the food?
In the research, she made some nursing mothers drink carrot juice every day, and then those nursing mothers would give cereal flavored with carrots to their breastfed babies.
After the research, the result shows that “The babies who had ingested carrot-flavored breast milk ate more of the carrot-flavored cereal than the other babies and seemed to like it more,” according to Romper.
Fennel Seeds
These seeds are highly nutritious and offer numerous health benefits. Fennel seeds can make your breast milk taste good because it’s high in vitamin C, fiber, and potassium.
The seeds, specifically, are used to give extra flavor to many Italian recipes, such as sausage, veggies, crackers, and bread.
Also, because of its high anti-oxidant properties, some research has even been done to show that fennel may help prevent cancer, reduces asthma, and congestion, and also improves breast milk production.
Fresh Or Dried Mint
This is another flavor that was found to show up in the milk of lactating mamas after they consumed it. According to Romper.com, mint flavor was present in lactating mother milk; and its peaking hour was about six hours after it was ingested.
ABC News confirms the same, both the lower concentrations of the flavor were found to be present as well as the six-hour peak.
Minty Desserts
According to the Danish study on lactating mothers reported by Romper.com and ABC.com, Mint flavors were detectable.
Mint oils and flavorings found in many sweet treats are often used to make sweets fresh and fun, and this strong flavor has shown to come through in the milk of nursing mothers.
Carrot Juice
Drinking carrot juice or maybe adding it to your smoothies, your baby may be getting a taste for it as well.
According to ABCNews.Go.com breastfeeding moms that consume carrot juice pass the flavor of the food which they consume to their nursing babies.
Carrot Cakes
Some people enjoy munching their carrots like bunnies or tossing them into salads while eating.
However, the report has shown that moms who drank carrot juice regularly while nursing had babies who were more likely to eat carrots with their early solid-foods meals (as reported at ABCNews.Go.com and Romper.com).
Carrots are the perfect ingredient for some moms especially when they’re in something baked and sweet.
Carrots are already quite sweet on their own, and the veggies are key components in classic carrot cake as well as other cakes, bread, and muffins.
Oranges
As a nursing mother, you need a boost of energy to keep your body refreshed, replenished, and revitalized. Oranges are a wonderful source of vitamin C, which is also found in breast milk.
Breastfeeding mothers who take more vitamin C from foods are generally safe and don’t need extra supplementation. Babies are sure to get their vitamin C from breast milk and remain well-fed and nurtured.
Read Also: 8 Foods That Makes Breast Milk Taste Bad
Top 5 Anti Lactogenic Foods That Decreases Breast Milk
- Parsley: Parsley is a diuretic. You may wish to avoid dishes with a large amount of parsley. However, if you are breastfeeding and you are worried about if you are breastfeeding and you are worried about your milk production. One meal to avoid during the postpartum period is tabbouleh. Alternatively, once the supply is established and everything is going fine, an occasional plate of tabbouleh is okay.
- Peppermint: Peppermint and spearmint can affect your milk production. Drinking peppermint tea occasionally should not be a problem. Altoids and other candies made from peppermint oil have been shown to lower milk production in most mothers.
- Sage And Oregano: These two have shown lower milk production. Sage tea is usually a remedy for over-production.
- Cabbage Leaves: Cabbage leaves work greatly to relieve breast engorgement but you should not overdo it. When you apply these leave more than once or twice a day, they can decrease your breast milk supply. Also, some topical creams made from cabbage extract can be used to decrease milk supply.
- Beer And Alcoholic Beverages: Another one you should avoid if you can is beer and other alcoholic beverages. Alcohol inhibits your milk ejection reflex. Over time, this can decrease your milk supply.
Related Posts:
- When To Start Drinking Mothers Milk Tea
- What To Eat When Breastfeeding Sick Baby
- Indian Foods To Increase Breast Milk (12 Foods To Try)
- How Much Weight Should a Baby Gain in the First Month? Explained
- Why Does Milk Turn Yellow When Frozen? Find Out!
Conclusion
I hope this article has enlightened you more on foods that make breast milk taste good?
It is highly important to put into consideration the foods you eat while you breastfeed because the food you eat directly can affect the taste of your breast milk, and if your baby tastes something they don’t like, they may go on a nursing strike or have difficulty eating.
If you have any questions or would like to share some other tips and experiences with breastfeeding, drop your comment or suggestion down below. We would love to hear it