I was on the internet the other day looking up information about breast milk and alcohol-I like to have a little suds with my supper and I don't want to be getting the baby drunk. I should confess that I don't really think I could get him drunk; not with the amount of beer I drink at night (about 1/2 a beer or 6 ounces). Anyway, I was still feeling some guilt about my decision to have a little beer at night and I decided to try to find out the truth.
Since everything on the internet is perfectly true and can be trusted, I turned to Google for help.
What I wound up finding was a list of no-no foods for breastfeeding moms. (I'm not sure why I felt the need to add 'moms' after 'breastfeeding'...there are probably very few breastfeeding dads...).
The reasons given are generally gastronomically related. They (don't ask, I don't know who "they" are) believe that they will either give babies gas, runny poops, or create early allergies once the food is introduced as a solid food.
Some of the offending foods include:
garlic
cabbage
onion
broccoli
Brussels sprouts
peppers
cucumbers
turnips
cow's milk products (this includes butter!)
oranges
lemons
limes
grapefruits
tangerines
chocolate
eggs
wheat
corn
fish
peanuts
nuts and
soy
...just to name a few. So if I have this right, my food should be limited to rice and....what? Water?
I can't believe that all these foods are potentially bad for me or Harvey. It's just not possible, as far as I'm concerned. I can't help but to think of cultures where people eat all this food with garlic and onions and don't have fussy or gassy babies.
When I asked a lactation consultant at the hospital about this nonsense she was very supportive and told me that babies who are introduced to these flavors through breast milk are more likely to be better eaters (read: more adventurous and less fussy)as they grow. Now, that makes sense. It makes sense to me that babies who taste the changes in breast milk (if taste does in fact change a great deal) with various foods will not balk at solid foods which taste different.
I eat garlic, onions, eggs, wheat, corn,butter, cheese, zucchini and squash almost every single day. I'm not ready to change.
Needless to say, I'm not cutting out any foods from my diet, unless I really do see some evidence that Harvey has a hard time digesting some of it. So far, he's in good shape. No excessive gas and no bad poops. I'm going to keep eating how I've been eating. Maybe with a little less fat and sugar, but only so I lose a little weight.
To make a long story even longer; I've talked with more than one physician and they have all told me that a little beer with supper isn't going to get the baby drunk. In fact, he probably won't even notice and there is unlikely to be any alcohol in my milk at all. Some people (physicians include) believe that a little beer (they give credit to the hops (which is also in nursing teas) and malted barley) helps milk to come in earlier and is more plentiful. I don't know if it's true, but I'm not arguing otherwise. I'm also not a binge-drinker, so I'm going to release myself of any guilt I've been trying to haul around with me....for now.
Who I'm reading:
About Chicken Lips:
- chicken lips
- raised in Kenai, AK, living in NC
- I like cupcakes, swimming in the ocean, traveling, my sweet husband, knitting, making my own clothes, fresh mozzarella-pesto-and-tomato sandwiches on crunchy bread, and scrabble..in no particular order. I hate mosquito bites on my feet and ankles,sweet food mixed with salty food, and sand in the bed.
5 comments:
I agree!! I swear the "rules" get more preposterous as time goes by! The only limitations I had was dairy with Joshua because he is (was) lactose intolerant & that started on day 2. He has already 80% outgrown it. Some digestive tracts are just more sensitive naturally, I don't think I did anything while pregnant to cause it. As for the alcohol, a little won't hurt at all. I've heard that about increasing milk production too, our midwives recommend a beer here & there for that reason (too bad I hate beer lol)
I think you can and should eat and drink whatever you want. Before the internet, no one was able to "Google" to find out what was bad or good. So, they just ate and drank whatever, and if affected the baby, they would avoid it. Don't get too engrossed in what everyone else has to say. Harvey will let you know if he does not like what you eat or drink.
I'm a med student, had a lecture on this the other day. The pediatric physician community is currently teaching that the only restricted foods should be eggs (some say no eggs until age 2) and peanuts (even more potentially dangerous, some say wait until age 3) (and specifically the white of the egg), and milk until they are a year old. Milk allergy (in infants) is real, albeit rare, and is more of a gut maturation issue than a true allergy. Still, they get bloody poop, so it's not benign.
But the main point of the talk was that introduction of the food doesn't cause allergy (except for milk protein allergy, which isn't a true immune allergy), it reveals it. You can't give your kid allergies, although you can prevent his/her immune maturation by making their environment too clean. Kids need dirt to train their immune systems.
Neener: You're right, the rules are too much! I'm not going to guilt myself about the beer, I'm not a binge drinker and not drinking liquor, I think it's okay.
Dad: Thanks for the support. As it turns out, I can't have citrus; gives Harvey a diaper rash....who knew?
Scott: Welcome! I agree with all the restrictions you've listed. I've heard raw milk is okay (since it's not been stripped of enzymes which allows us to digest it...what do you think?).I think if I introduce milk (after one year) it'll be in the form on keifer, since it has good probiotics and should be easier to digest.
Eat what sounds good for you - your body knows what it needs! I eat everything, including lots of garlic and spicy foods and chocolate, etc. with no problems.
I also have a glass of wine almost every night. And my babies are exceptional eaters and doing great.
You're doing fine, you're a great mom, don't stress about the minutiae. . .
Sounds like you already knew that though . . . :)
Best,
Sarah
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