Maternal food restrictions during breastfeeding

Abstract

PurposeThis study investigated self-food restriction during breastfeeding, reviewed the literature showing the effect of maternal diet on the health of breast-fed infants, and explored the validity of dietary restrictions.MethodsQuestionnaire data were collected from breastfeeding Korean mothers who visited the pediatric clinic of Cheil General Hospital & Women's Healthcare Center from July 2015 through August 2015. The survey included items assessing maternal age, number of children, maternal educational attainment, household income, degree of difficulty with self-food restriction, types of self-restricted foods, dietary customs during breastfeeding, and sources of information about breastfeeding.ResultsThe questionnaire was completed by 145 mothers. More than a third (n=56, 39%) had discomfort from and usually avoided 4–5 types of food (mean, 4.92). Mothers younger than 40 years had more discomfort (odds ratio [OR], 12.762; P=0.017). Primiparas felt less discomfort than multiparas (OR, 0.436; P=0.036). Dietary practices were not influenced by maternal educational attainment or household income. The most common self-restricted foods were caffeine (n=131, 90.3%), spicy foods (n=124, 85.5%), raw foods (n=109, 75.2%), cold foods (n=100, 69%), and sikhye (traditional sweet Korean rice beverage) (n=100, 69%). Most mothers (n=122, 84.1%) avoided foods for vague reasons.ConclusionMost mothers restricted certain foods unnecessarily. Literature review identified no foods that mothers should absolutely avoid during breastfeeding unless the infant reacts negatively to the food.

Dietary Patterns and Determinants of Pregnant and Lactating Women From Marginalized Communities in India: A Community-Based Cross-Sectional Study

“…The calorie-rich dietary pattern with high milk and milk product consumption is an age-old tradition among Indian women where they are fed more milk with the notion that it would enhance their breast milk production. The study, based on the GUSTO birth cohort, also reported similar results (34). The study mentioned that the consumption of leafy vegetables and milk-based drinks increased post-pregnancy among Indian participants compared to the pre-pregnancy period from 47.1 to 73.4% (p < 0.001).…”

Maternal undernutrition during lactation leads to reduction in skull size and thickness of adult-aged Wistar rats

“…It is known that the mother's diet directly affects the quality and quantity of the produced milk. Despite that, there are significant rates of maternal malnutrition in developing and developed countries [1,2,[4][5][6]19].…”

“…Despite that, maternal malnutrition rates are still fairly high among the general population. Hence, it is still a public health issue in developing or underdeveloped countries [5][6][7].…”

“…An inadequate amount of micronutrients is one of the main causes of maternal malnutrition in low income countries -essentially due to the lack of resources [5]. On the other hand, cultural factors and myths regarding the mother's diet during the lactation period are another cause of nutrient restriction [6].…”

The Cortical Matrix of Femur in Adult-Aged Wistar Rats is Critically Affected by Maternal Malnutrition During Lactation Period

“…It is not only a product of noningestion of food, since irregular dietary habits such as excessive fast food ingestion can cause this condition (Ahsan et al, 2017;Kavle et al, 2018). Despite numerous governmental programs and campaigns, there is still a high incidence of pregnant and lactating women that have an inadequate nutrient intake (Black et al, 2013;Haileslassie et al, 2013;Jeong et al, 2017).…”