As you may know, consuming too much sugar while breastfeeding a baby impairs the baby’s development.
Generally, the foods a mother eats while breastfeeding doesn’t change the breast milk composition, but some foods find their way to the baby through the milk.
The random foods women consume may affect milk production and, in some cases, depletes the required essential nutrients for the baby’s development.
This is why you may wonder whether eating honey mustard while breastfeeding is okay since your baby’s life is on the line. Read on to find out.
What is Honey Mustard?
Honey Mustard comprises a couple of natural ingredients like honey and mustard, the main ingredients, and other ingredients like mayonnaise, some spices, and vinegar whipped into a creamy sweet sauce.
It can be served as a bread spread, sprinkled on vegetables, used as a salad dressing, or eaten with chicken or steaks. Due to its amount of honey, it is a high-calorie food with a calorie level of about 170kcal.
Can I Eat Honey Mustard While Breastfeeding?
Yes, you can eat honey mustard while Breastfeeding. While mustard honey may be extremely sweet and not so appropriate for consumption at all times, eating it occasionally will not harm your system.
Mustard and honey are natural ingredients with nutrients that can be useful to the body. However, you should be mindful of how often you eat it since its sweetness can sometimes be addictive.
Also, keep in mind that it contains many calories in a single serving, which is unhealthy for a breastfeeding mother.
As your body is recovering from the rigorous pregnancy journey, it is dealing with the weight gained during pregnancy due to the hormonal changes it underwent that come from lactation. Therefore, adding more weight will give room for complex health complications.
There are different types of mustard honey with varying calorie levels, low-fat or high-fat, but even the least type (fat-free) contains about 50 calories per serving. This means that for every two tablespoons serving, you consume about 100 calories.
Read: Can I eat clam chowder while breastfeeding? Explained
Benefits of Eating Mustard Honey
Just like every regular food, eating mustard honey also has benefits, making it worth consuming.
These range from its natural taste of unadulterated nutrients to other properties and benefits that make it worthwhile.
Below are the benefits of eating mustard honey, either while breastfeeding or not.
1. Weight Loss
Natural mustard honey boosts metabolic activities and lowers fat levels, eliminating excess fat deposits and preventing obesity.
2. Lowers Cholesterol Levels
Yellow mustard contains monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. This help reduces the LDL in your system and balances your Cholesterol level.
3. Reduces Heart-Related Problems
Generally, eating foods that keep your cholesterol level in check prevents heart disease. Mustard Honey maintains your weight and eliminates unhealthy fat in your system, all of which, if present, lead to fatal heart diseases.
Only to mention a few of the numerous benefits of eating mustard and honey. Others include the treatment of colds, coughs, and catarrh. It also helps to maintain glycogen levels.
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Is it Safe to Eat Mustard Honey While Breastfeeding?
Yes, it is safe for lactating mothers to eat mustard, and honey. Many women are concerned about the direct effect eating mustard honey can have on their babies. Because babies are prone to botulism, it is understandable why mothers should be concerned.
Babies have quite a delicate system, especially their stomach, which is not acidic enough to fight the bacteria that cause botulism.
However, since mothers have the stomach acidity necessary to kill germs in contaminated honey, there’s no risk their breast milk will contain botulism germs.
This means that, contrary to the popular opinion that babies stand the risk of botulism when they consume natural honey mustard, they’re not eating it directly.
Therefore, it is safe for a Breastfeeding mother to eat mustard, and honey. However, if fed directly, babies below the age of 1 are prone to botulism if they eat honey mustard.
Read: Can I Eat Pizza While Breastfeeding? Explained
Can I Eat Honey Mustard While Pregnant?
Pregnancy is the most delicate stage for every unborn child and the mother. Because the growth and development of the unborn child are solely dependent on the mother, what she consumes, the environment she lives in, and the activities she engages in all affect the child. This is why many women think twice before putting anything in their system.
Fortunately for women who enjoy mustard honey, you can continue eating it moderately while pregnant.
Moderately because the amount of sugar in mustard honey is enough to cause enough discomfort that it can sometimes be fatal, it is generally okay for pregnant women to eat mustard honey however they choose to serve it.
Nutritional Breakdown of Honey Mustard
Here is a breakdown of the nutritional value of honey mustard for every 100g serving.
| Vitamin B6 1% | Potassium 1% |
| Vitamins D6 1% | Calcium 1% |
| Vitamin B2 2% | Zinc 1% |
| Vitamin B12 2% | Magnesium 1% |
| Vitamin B5 2% | Iron 2% |
| Vitamin A 2% | Copper 2% |
| Vitamin B1 3% | Phosphorus 2% |
| Choline 4% | Manganese 3% |
| Vitamin E 24% | Selenium 9% |
| Vitamin K 58% | Sodium 34% |
Honey Mustard contains a host of other nutrients that makes it healthy for consumption but looking at the major nutrients alone should give you a picture of the overall nutritional value of honey mustard in just 100g serving.
What Food Should I Eat While Breastfeeding
Like during pregnancy, the foods you eat while breastfeeding is crucial to your baby’s nutrition. You should maintain a healthy diet that focuses on whole foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans, lean protein, low-fat dairy (or non-dairy alternatives), nuts, and seeds.
Doing this while breastfeeding will keep you, and your baby well-nourished and support the baby’s growth and development.
What About ‘Gassy’ Foods While Breastfeeding?
Baby gassiness and fussiness are often associated with acidic foods (such as citrus fruit and tomatoes), spicy or strong-flavored foods (such as garlic or hot sauce), and “gassy foods” (such as broccoli and cauliflower).
Although, there may be several other reasons why your baby is gassy, and they may have nothing to do with your food.
There is no need to limit your diet unless you see a direct correlation between certain foods and the same reaction in your baby every time.
What Foods Should I Avoid While Breastfeeding?
Caffeine
Generally, breastfeeding mothers should consume no more than 200-300 milligrams of caffeine daily or about two to three cups of coffee. Despite no evidence that caffeine decreases milk production, you’ll want to watch your baby closely to see how they react to it.
Mercury
Certain fish eat foods that contain methylmercury, which stays in the fish’s body after consumption. Breastfeeding women can expose their babies to harmful amounts of methylmercury through their breast milk if they eat these fish.
Alcohol
Breastfeeding mothers should avoid drinking alcohol while they are breastfeeding. According to AAP (The American Academy of Pediatrics), drinking alcoholic beverages while breastfeeding should be minimized and limited to an occasional intake.
To minimize alcohol levels in breast milk, the AAP recommends waiting at least two hours after you consume alcohol.
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Conclusion
Eating honey mustard while breastfeeding may not be suitable for everyday use since it is mostly sugar, and excess sugar is not good for the body. But we cannot overemphasize the many benefits it offers to the body. It is not just natural, but it also helps in the prevention of other health challenges.
If you’re wondering, “can I eat honey mustard while breastfeeding?” you’re sure to get your answer in this article, as well as the breakdown of what you’re ingesting.