Should you drink when you’re breastfeeding? What nutrients do you need more of when nursing a child? ParentsAsk.com has the answers.
Find out about alcohol and breastfeeding and your breastfeeding diet here.
Have you seen my other blog at USATODAY.com? It features tips for feeding your family healthy foods, and offers a weekly recipe that I prepare with my children as part of Cooking With My Kids. This week’s recipe is Pork Medallions with Cherry Sauce. Yum!
According to a new study in The Journal of Pediatrics, breastfeeding your baby for six months or longer may reduce their risk for mental health problems later on.
As a mother of three breastfed children, and as a health professional, I’m pleased to hear about yet another benefit of breastfeeding, but I have to wonder: Is this great news for nursing moms, a source of guilt for moms who choose infant formula for feeding their babies from the get-go or after a few months of nursing, or both?
It’s probably both.
Nobody is sure what the connection is between nursing and a sunnier disposition in kids. Nursing may help children cope better with stress, and may be a sign of a stronger mother-child bond that helps a child feel secure and less stressed.
In this study of nearly 2,400 children born to Australian women, children were given mental health assessments at two, five, eight, 10 and 14 years of age. The researchers reported that kids who were breastfed for shorter periods of time exhibited worse behavior and tended to have bleaker outlooks.
Maybe the mothers had something to do with their child’s mental health and view of the world. Moms who breastfed their infants for less than six months were poorer, younger, more likely to smoke, less educated, and reported more stress and postpartum depression - factors that influence child development. But even when the researchers adjusted for social, economic, and psychological factors, breastfeeding for six months or longer remained associated with better mental health in children and teens.
I’m a big fan of breastfeeding, and I think women should at least give it a try. However, there’s no reason to feel guilty because of what this, or any other study says, if you choose infant formula instead of breast milk.
Have you seen my other blog at USAToday.com? It features tips for feeding your family healthy foods, and offers a weekly recipe that I prepare with my children as part of Cooking With My Kids. This week’s recipe is Broccoli Slaw, and it’s delicious and easy to make! Check it out at http://tinyurl.com/4×2e5x.
A new study in July’s issue of Epidemiology has found a link between a lower intake of omega-3 fats (the unsaturated, or healthy, fats) from seafood and a higher risk for depression during pregnancy. Apparently, eating fish boosted mood in a group of nearly 10,000 expectant moms in Britain. A sunnier outlook on life is just one reason to include seafood when you’re having a baby, however.
The omega-3 fats in seafood, particularly docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are vital to your baby’s brain development and vision. DHA is the dominant fat in brain cells and the retina, located in the back of each eye. The retina is often called the window to the world because it’s involved in registering what you see and transmitting those images to your brain for processing.
During the third trimester, your child’s brain is developing at a very rapid pace. He’ll get the DHA he needs as long as your intake is adequate. Pregnant women need at least 200 milligrams of DHA every day from food or from dietary supplements. Fish and shellfish provide preformed DHA, the type the body prefers. You can make DHA from another fat called alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), present in foods such as walnuts and flax, but the conversion rate is very low.
You may shy away from seafood because of the warnings about its safety during the childbearing years. You should avoid swordfish, tilefish, king mackerel, and shark because of their excessive mercury content, and you should limit canned white tuna to 6 ounces a week. Mercury harms the developing nervous system during pregnancy and nursing. If you like fish, keep it on the menu. It’s rich in protein, vitamins, and minerals in addition to DHA. Three ounces of salmon, cooked, contains about 750 milligrams of DHA; the same amount of crab, or light tuna, canned contains about 190 milligrams. Fortified foods, such as eggs, pregnancy bars, soymilk, milk and yogurt contain between 32 and 150 milligrams of preformed DHA. (For more on products with preformed DHA, go to www.martek.com.)
Take dietary supplements of at least 200 milligrams a day of DHA when pregnant and nursing if you don’t think you’re getting enough through food. You may be happier for it, and your baby will surely benefit!
