Breastfeeding your baby

When you're breastfeeding you should try to eat a varied and balanced diet.

What to eat

It's important to try to eat a variety of foods including:

• plenty of fruit and vegetables (fresh, frozen, tinned, dried or a glass of juice). Aim for at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables a day
• starchy foods such as bread, pasta, rice and potatoes to give you the extra energy you'll need
• plenty of fibre, found in wholegrain bread and breakfast cereals, pasta, rice, pulses (such as beans and lentils) and fruit and vegetables. After childbirth, some women experience bowel problems and find constipation particularly painful, but fibre helps with both of these
• protein such as lean meat and chicken, fish, eggs and pulses
• fish at least twice a week including some oily fish
• dairy foods, such as milk, cheese and yoghurt, which contain calcium and are a useful source of protein

Also, drink plenty of fluid, try to drink at least 6 to 8 glasses of fluid a day.

Vitamins

While you're breastfeeding you should take supplements containing 10 micrograms (mcg) of vitamin D each day. You should be able to get all the other vitamins and minerals you need by eating a varied and balanced diet.

If you receive Income Support or Jobseeker's Allowance, you're entitled to some free vitamin supplements from maternity and child health clinics.

What to avoid

Eating fish is good for your health and the development of your baby. But don't have more than two portions of oily fish a week. Oily fish includes fresh tuna (not canned tuna, which does not count as oily fish), mackerel, sardines and trout.

You should avoid eating more than one portion of shark, swordfish or marlin a week, because of the levels of mercury in these fish. This advice is the same for all adults, except women who are pregnant, or trying to get pregnant, who should avoid these fish altogether.

Some breastfed babies seem to react to foods their mothers eat. If you think that some foods that you eat are affecting your baby, don't stop eating them without talking to your GP or health visitor first. But remember, it's normal for breastfed babies to have loose stools.

Should I avoid peanuts?

It isn’t clear from the latest science if eating peanuts (or not eating them) when you’re breastfeeding affects the chances of your baby developing a peanut allergy. So if you would like to eat peanuts or foods containing peanuts (such as peanut butter) when you’re breastfeeding, you can choose to do so, unless you’re allergic to them yourself.

You may have heard that some women have chosen not to eat peanuts when they are pregnant or breastfeeding. This is because the Government used to advise women that they may wish to avoid eating peanuts at these times if there is a history of allergy in their child's immediate family, such as asthma, eczema, hayfever, food allergy or other types of allergy. This was in case a woman eating peanuts when pregnant or breastfeeding increased the chance of her baby developing a peanut allergy. But this advice was changed in August 2009 because it isn’t clear from the latest research if eating peanuts at these times affects the chances of your baby developing a peanut allergy.

How much to eat and drink

Most women's bodies are very efficient at making breast milk - which provides all the nutrients a baby needs for healthy development in the first months of life - so you don't need to eat for two. But, just like any other time, it's important for you and your baby that you eat a healthy balanced diet.

It can be difficult to find the time to eat properly when you're looking after a young baby but you might find these hints helpful:

• Keep meals simple so they don't take too long to prepare.
• Make eating regularly a high priority.
• Try eating smaller meals more frequently.

We should all be drinking at least 6 to 8 glasses (1.2 litres) of fluid every day. When you're breastfeeding you need to drink even more than this. If you feel thirsty, this means you're already dehydrated. If your urine is dark and has a strong smell, this is also a sign that you are not drinking enough.

It's a good idea to have a drink by your side before you settle down to breastfeed. Water, milk and unsweetened fruit juices are all good choices.

Small amounts of whatever you're eating and drinking may pass to your baby through your breast milk. So it's a good idea to think carefully about how much alcohol and caffeine you're having. These may affect the baby in the same way they affect you.

If you do have alcohol or caffeine, try to have them only occasionally, because having them regularly, or in large amounts, will affect your baby.

Losing weight

It's not a good idea to try to lose weight while you're breastfeeding because you need to keep up your energy levels and you might miss out on the nutrients that you and your baby need.

The good news is that the extra fat laid down in pregnancy is used to make breast milk, so breastfeeding will help you get back into shape quicker.

If you eat a healthy balanced diet, limit the amount of fat and sugar you eat, and are physically active, this will help you to lose any extra weight you put on during pregnancy.

More information

For information on how to breastfeed, visit the NHS breastfeeding website (see below). You might also find Birth to five useful. Published by health departments in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, it's available free to first-time parents. The Health Education Board for Scotland produces Ready steady baby!, free to first-time parents in Scotland. Speak to your GP, midwife or health visitor, or contact your local health promotion unit.