What NOT to Eat While Breastfeeding

Pretty much anything that would give you gas, while give the baby gas. Onions were a big one for me.

M.

I was told by my pediatrician that tomatoes weren't a good food to eat while breastfeeding. I also was told to pay attention to scents. For example pickels and onions have a strong scent so I didn't eat them. Garlic was another one. Hope this helped

With both of my kids I had to give up dairy entirely. The proteins and lactose did not agree with their little systems.

I'm a vegitarian most of the time, so I didn't avoid much of anything. That being said, anything too spicy for the first few months was a problem, and she was gassy when I ate wheat products. Also, "hidden caffine" in products were a huge issue. Decaf coffee still has caffine, and I'd see it in the little one.

Hope you have good luck with this. It could also be that you and she are figuring each other out still, my baby started cholic at 3 weeks...

Hello N.,

The Doctors and the nurses pretty much told me not to eat anything spicy and things like that as it would get passed on to the baby through the breast milk I pretty much ignored this and ate what I wanted to. Its best to eat healthy foods like vegetables and fruits,drink plenty of water,milk and juice while breastfeeding. I gave birth to 5 kids and breastfed each of them until they were a yr. old and ate pretty much what I wanted at that time and they were all fine and well and healthy.

Hope this helps you to decide on what you want to eat while breastfeeding your newborn.

A bit about me I'm a 40 yr old single mom raising 5 kids on my own.. 4 boys 19,17,15, and 7 and a girl 12. I work during the day so this way I can be at home with them in the evenings.

I am sure each person is different but I had to avoid eggs while nursing. It gave my babies terrible gas and tummy aches. They would scream forever after feeding after a breakfast with eggs. Also if she is fine for a while after eating and then gets fussy try burping her again. My girls both needed to be burped a second time a little while after eating. Hope this helps, mothering is such a trial and error job.

Nancysue,
You do not habe to avoid ANY certain foods while breastfeeding; mothers can eat any food they like, including broccoli and chocolate. IF there is a family history of allergies, you may want to avoid those foods. IF the baby has a response to a specific food every time you eat it, you can eliminate that food. Fussiness at 2 1/2 weeks is developmentally very normal, and may be a growth spurt indicating baby needs to nurse more often. Funny how a fussy formula fed baby never has the formula questioned, but in a breastfed baby so many people instantly assume it is Mom's diet!! Babies just cry sometimes; if it is severe, look at ALL possible causes as well as diet, which is less likely than needing to eat or be held.....
E.

Hi Nancysue,
I personally could eat anything while breastfeeding; however, my mom had a list of things she couldn't eat, including cantaloupe! It didn't affect her, but made for a gassy, upset baby.

La Leche League website states "If you notice that your baby reacts badly after you have eaten something, it may be best to leave that food out of your diet for a while." (http://www.llli.org/FAQ/avoid.html)

which makes perfect sense!
Best of luck to you -
K.

Hi N.,

I found that each of my chilren were sensitive to different things and I would watch them to see what they were. They all hated onions. One let me know when I ate too much garlic and another was sensitive to spicey foods. Eat food and let your baby tell you. I ate small amounts of chocolate and was fine with two of the three. They were all wonderful babies but let me know when I ate something they did not like and I would adjust my diet.

Congratulations on your beautiful little gift. Relax and enjoy your time.

I had to give up caffeine all together! (UGH) My daughter was fussy and couldn't sleep.

I pretty much eat everything while breastfeeding without any difficulty, including two cups of coffee each day. I do not overdo any one thing however. Sometimes baby's are fussy. It's hard to adjust to being outside the womb. It may be normal behavior. I think it's better to expose them to different things through the breastmilk as I think they do better later on with different foods. I recommend you talk with your pediatrician or lactation consultant about what's normal fussiness and what might be related to the milk. Good luck. It's tough having a newborn!

Caffiene, cabbage and onions can also irritate your baby.

I'm breastfeeding my third baby (6 weeks old) and I eat broccoli at least 3 times a week and chocolate every day. That's just misinformation. I'm a member of La Leche League International and there is nothing you "shouldn't" eat. Not that it's recommended, but even a starving mother or one living off of licorice will still produce enough high quality milk for her baby. At her own body's expense, of course. She'd be sapped of all nutrients. Just eat healthy, take your vitamins and enjoy doing the best thing you can for your baby :)

Well done for asking this.
So many mamas could have such an easier time (and so could their babies!) if their doctors/midwives were educated in this.
This is what I know.
Avoid any vegetable in the brassicus family - you could google it to find a complete list but I know/think it includes broccoli, cabbage, collards, bok choi, cauliflower, I think kale?. They contain relatively high amounts of sulfur so produce gas in weak digestive systems that can't handle them.
Avoid onions and garlic - either sulfur containing or make the milk taste wierd or both, can't remember but definately no nos.
No chocolate as you said.
Then there is a whole list of other foods that could cause problems, depending on how well the mother digests the food in question.
If you yourself doesn't properly digest milk for example, or beans (2 big culprits), then the undigested protein in these foods passes into your milk and then we expect our little baby's immature digestive system, with the same genetic inadequacies of our own to digest it instead! Which they can't so they get gas and tummy ache and cry cos it really hurts.
I had no problem with tomatoes. The lady who responded first probably has a mild sensitivity to tomatoes, ie she doesn't digest them fully. Most of us don't know what we are are insensitive to cos we eat the food all the time and just get used to feeling the way we feel.
My recommendation would be to avoid the following completely for 3 weeks and then introduce each food individually and see if she gets fussy or not.
Brassicus veg
Onions and garlic
Beans and legumes
Dairy
Soy
Wheat
If there is anything else you know you are allergic to or have a hard time digesting, but eat it anyway, don't!
Be very observant of your infant. For me it was quite obvious. If I ate cheese, I would be up twice as often in the night. I couldn't eat most of the above for the first 3 months, (soy was fine for me but not for some other moms I know). After 3 months their digestive systems are stronger so you won't necessarily have to avoid all these for the whole time you breastfeed. With my son, I could eat garlic after 3 months but it took longer with beans and dairy. Experiment, observe and avoid accordingly!
If you think you are short changed on what to eat, I ate tons of spinach, chard, beets, yams, sweet potatoes, squash, quinoa, rice and alot of meat and good fish.....

I didn't think to ask that question with my first one, and ate a couple pieces of jalepeno pizza. What a mistake! Try to keep away from hot spicy foods while nursing, they really can bother the baby.
J.

I avoided Onions, and also excessive garlic.

Hi! I don't know if anyone else experienced this- and it's a biggie: hydrogenated oils. I noticed when I tried this Brummel and Brown "Yogurt" spread (mostly hydrogenated soybean oil)when I was nursing that my baby started really being colicky and would seem to have gas cramps. Sure enough, when I stopped using that spread he seemed better. I had also been eating alot of homemade tortillas (with crisco) that my husband's mom made and it had the same effect. Unfortunately, these oils are in almost everything. (Bread, chips, peanut butter!)If you switch to the "natural and organic section" atleast while you are nursing, it could help. Of course, some babies don't get colic or gas at all and who knows- you could have one of them! Good luck!

Caffeine. I avoided all soda/coffee/etc. while pregnant but after my daughter was born I tried throwing in the occasional latte. Bad idea. She responded horribly to caffeine. Wouldn't sleep, would get over tired and then just cry and cry and cry. I know some women drink coffee throughout pregnancy and breastfeeding without issue but it was horrible for us and I would say to avoid it. I always had to be very aware of anything new that I ate while breastfeeding, my daughter was very sensitive to any changes. Good Luck!

Any milk products really upset my newborn. She is about 6 months old now and I can eat or drink a little bit. Also, any sauces that were tomato based. So, a lot of italian and mexican was off limits. Good luck!

Hi, Below are the 3 foods that I discover bothered our infant the most (all caused HUGE problems):

- Onion
- Rice
- Peanuts

Good luck with your elimination diet!

My first two daughters both had caulic so no matter what I ate or avoided, they were still fussy. Mylacon gas drops really helped my first daughter. The doctor also showed us that we could push the babies knees gently toward her chest to get out gas bubbles. At the 3 month mark it all went away. I could eat anything I wanted and they wouldn't fuss.

Yes! What you eat absolutely affects your babies tummy, gas, & how much they spit up. Broccoli, chocolate, acid based foods - tomatoes, citrus, etc....., & anything rich like alfredo sauces...... Every baby reacts differently....try a food & if your baby is fussy in the next 24hrs, cut out that food while you nurse. Good luck! Your daughter is lucky to have such a concerned mom!

Nancysue,
I disagree with the broccoli avoidance because both of our boys didn't have problems with it. Keep a log of what you are eating; specific foods, seasonings, and at what meal. Also, in the margin beside the meal, write down how it affected the baby if at all. This may help you find out the triggering food. I agree with staying away from foods that contain caffeine.

We found out that when I ate peanuts our son broke out in a rash all over his body. This was by doing the food log.

Best of luck to you.

Try to avoid caffeine, that always gave my son gas.

I don't think there is a universal rule of what not to eat. You might need to experiment to find out what bothers your baby. I personally found that I couldn't eat bananas with one of my children. I have heard that spicy foods bother some babies. You might start there.

Congrats on your new babe!

Sometimes it just takes some time to figure out what is causing the problems, but like the other moms wrote, there are some foods that are common trouble makers.

For my then 4 month old, it was dairy. We took him to the pediatrician and he told me to eliminate all dairy from my diet. Some babies are more sensitive than others and can't digest milk proteins at all. They can be found in almost everything - from cereal to bread to potato chips and lunch meat. Once I got all the dairy out of my diet, all his symptoms stopped, and he also stopped spitting up (this was an extra bonus!). Pediatricians say that babies should grow out of these kinds of sensitivities by the time they are 1 year.

Good luck in your detective work! As I have read, you've got some great leads from some great mommas.

I was eating raw vegetables and it caused my baby extreme discomfort. When I stopped we started getting a lot more sleep and the crying tummy ache ended.

just watch out for some herbs. For example sage will slow or stop your milk supply.

My son didn't do well when I had anything spicy- like pepperoni on my pizza. I have also heard that garlic is bad to eat when you are nursing. Good luck!

I know my little one (4weeks) has problems and is gassy when I eat broccoli and salad, anything green. I ate both on Sunday at a church luncheon and didn't even think about it and we have had a rough 24 hours or so. She is settling down now, but was very gassy, fussy, and uncomfortable. Caffeine has never bothered my little ones, but I have heard that it can. Good luck! Just try new things, it is really hit and miss!

You are probably going to get all kinds of answers to this, depending on the cultural background and personal experience of the advisor. My daughter was born in Korea. My American mother advised me not to eat garlic or onions, while my Korean doctor said the best way to boost milk supply was to fry up TEN cloves of garlic and eat them for lunch every day!

Anyway, with both my babies, I ate everything, including broccoli (my favorite vegetable), onions, garlic, and the occasional chocolate, my favorite treat, with no ill effects whatsoever. No upset baby tummies, no refusal to nurse. The only food I had to give up with my daughter was curry. You could actually smell it in my milk, and she made it very plain that she did not like the taste. My son liked everything (still does), and actually seemed to relish garlicky milk. Babies do have preferences. Is there anything you like to eat that has a particularly strong flavor that your baby reacts to, perhaps?

with one of my four kids it was caffeine that just sent her into a frenzy. at first i thought it was carbonation, so for a week i switched to drinking iced coffee all day long and it just made things worse. so i eliminated the caffeine altogether and after a week (it takes a long time to work out of their system!) she was a new child. she was also very sensitive to smells. my mom couldn't do her scented candle thing if she knew we were coming over.

I think this is different for everyone. I didn't avoid ANYTHING with my second child and she had no problems at all. My first one had an intense milk sensitivity that way beyond a little fussiness.

I've heard a lot of moms talk about avoiding onions, garlic and spicy foods. I simply never found this necessary.

If you're having trouble producing milk try seeing a lactation specialist. It might not be food related. A good lactation specialist will help you identify that. It's worth every penny even if it's not covered under your insurance.

This is from Dr Sears website. I had to track it down for my little one too. Dairy was my answer! There is also tips on dealing with a fussy baby on the website.

If your child is experiencing colic, it may be due to something in your diet that is passing through the breastmilk. Here is a list of foods that may be the culprit. You can eliminate all foods at once or just a few at a time, depending on how severe the colic is. It sometimes takes up to two weeks for a food to get out of your system, so be patient. Good luck!

Dairy products
Caffeine – coffee, tea, soda
Soy products
Peanuts
Shellfish
Chocolate (sorry!)
Citrus fruits
Wheat
Chicken
Beef
Eggs
Nuts
Corn
Prenatal vitamins (The iron may be irritating to baby. Ask your OB for an alternative if this is the culprit.)
Gassy vegetables:
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Cabbage
Onions
Green peppers
Tomatoes

Hi N. Sue,
I would HIGHLY suggest keeping a food diary!!!!
I ate just about everything but certain foods would make my baby fussy. I started writing down everything that I ate (and how much) and by doing this and found out that Chocolate seemed to make my oldest really gassy and fussy. My youngest was fine with everything that I ate.
This also helped me loose weight faster. It's amazing how much smarter or less you eat when you have to write down everything you put in your mouth!!
Good luck!
MJ

Caffeine can be an irritant to breastfeeding babies. Other things to limit or avoid are not for reasons of fussiness, but for allergy reasons. Common allergens are peanuts and strawberries and if you have anyone with these allergies in your family it's a good idea to avoid them.

Also keep in mind that 2 weeks is often when unexplained fussiness starts. I think that crying peaks between 4 and 8 weeks. So it may not be anything that you're eating, just a fussy time for your baby. It certainly doesn't hurt to try, though!

Hi there,
Boy, can I relate! My son who is now almost 4 had many, many reactions to foods while I was nursing him. We have NO food allergies in our family, so it took until he was almost 6 weeks for me to figure this out (so you are ahead of the game here!). He would be sleeping and wake up crying so, so loud that you could tell he was in pain. He would also have these enormous poos-- literally explosive and would shoot 2 ft across the room (if he went while I happen to be changing him). Hopefully your little one isn't so uncomfortable! Here's what I did. First of all, eliminate ALL dairy; milk, cheese, sour cream, cream based salad dressing, butter, etc... (they can take YOUR milk but be sensitive to cow's, goat, etc). Also eliminate ALL raw veggies (can make them gassey). This will tough at first, but after a while I noticed a HUGE difference in him, so I never found it too challenging. It took about 7-10 days for the milk to clear my system and then his. After that- totally different baby! Once he was stable and happy for some time, I reintroduced foods one at a time. Then I could figure out what things I was able to eat and what things made him fussy. By 3-4 months his stomach was more mature and could handle mostly anything except spicy foods. And IF it happens to be lactose bothering her belly, if you decide it's too much and need to give her formula, you'll need a lactose-free formula which is pretty costly. The upside of all of this-- I lost all my baby weight by 3 months!!!! Yea!!!! Good luck!

Hello -
It really depends o you and your system I think. As someone pointed out to me when I started thinking I automatically should avoid certain foods like onions and garlic -- there are plenty of cultures where those are staples in their diet and women don't avoid those things and their babies aren't any more or less fussy. I think the real key is a very varied diet and not too much of one thing.

Don't get me wrong though, I have really had alter my diet and avoid a few things like soy (including oil which like one response pointed out is in EVERYTHING that has vegetable oil basically), dairy, mint, fresh garlic as well as I have to be careful with too much nut stuff (peanut butter, raw or the like). My daughter is now 3 months and I am finding that I have been able to bring more back in slowly.

It is just a process of elimination and trusting your own instincts. At the same time, one thing I read said to not alter your diet too much because you are setting yourself up for a picky eater. So, take whatever advice with a grain of salt and do what works for you and your lifestyle. Good luck!!

OH and kellymom.com has a great list of herbs and stuff too as well as a great resource for breast feeding. T.

Babies are fussy - it will get worse until about 6 weeks, then taper off between 6 and 12 weeks, and it is a natural part of their adjustment to life. Hard I know, but at least it doesn't last forever. I'm having my third here in a few days, and believe me, I'm not looking forward to those first 3 months of crying.

I wouldn't stress about your diet and eliminating things unless there are clear signs of a food sensitivity (blood in bms, extreme crying that ONLY seems to happen after eating a certain food). If that's the case then talk to your ped - they can do some tests on multiple stool samples to see if it is consistent. I had to cut out dairy for a few months while bf'ing my oldest because he had blood in his stools, and once the dairy was stopped the blood stopped. But he was also very fussy and colicky, and cutting dairy didn't have any impact whatsoever on the amount of his crying, unfortunately.

Of course if you WANT to be on a restricted diet, you can cut out all kinds of things! I just don't think it's probably necessary. What I can remember from the list of possible triggers my ped gave me are onions, garlic, nuts, chocolate, raw veggies, dairy, eggs... If it makes you feel better, like you're doing something, then try cutting out some of those. But I'd recommend reading The Happiest Baby on the Block or Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child and getting a new perspective on your baby's fussiness instead.

i have one word! no dairy!! did wonders for us and for many of my patients!

for my daughter it was onions & dairy. Any cruciferous(sp) vegetable might be an issue, cucumber,cauliflower, but try them one at a time.

be well,
A.

Hi Nancysue,

Well, In Hungary they said it is good to avoid beans, and avoid cabbage (mainly pickled or sour grout)-- because it can go through the breast milk. Don't know if this helps or not; I haven't seen either of these listed yet. Hope you figure it out!

Best wishes and enjoy the little one! We had tummy troubles as well; just pressed his knees into his tummy!

S.