Drum sticks, sesame good for new mums

I am a first-time mother. Are there any dietary dos and don’ts that breast feeding mothers need to be aware of?
— Seema Kukreja

Congratulation to motherhood. Breastfeeding is a unique opportunity to bond with your baby. From a dietary perspective though, you don’t have to obsess over this phase from a nutritional standpoint.

When considering what to eat, I would like to start off by saying that you don’t need to drink milk to make milk. For those who think that the consumption of milk is in itself reassurance that breast milk is being produced, it is the protein, water and sugar present in the milk, that does that, and not the milk itself. Foods that help to improve mammary gland production are fenugreek seeds and leaves, sesame seeds, cumin seeds, tulsi, drumsticks and its leaves, to name a few. In my new book,  Eat Delete Junior, I have given easy to follow guidelines for new mums, lactation diets, how to improve quality and quantity of milk along with busting several floating breastfeeding myths.

Pooja Makhija
Consulting nutritionist and clinical dietitian

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Mail your queries at: dnahealthpage@gmail.com; you can contact Pooja at: pooja@nourishgenie.com