10 Ways to Optimize Postpartum Nutrition
Ariana Carlson is a registered dietician, and long-time friend and former club soccer teammate of mine, and is currently pregnant with her third child.
She was kind enough to write us up her version of the nutrition basics for caring for your newly postpartum body. Together, we are trying to make this less intimidating, simpler to understand, and more realistic to execute. I am speaking for myself as someone who generally eats mindfully and knows how to fuel my body, I could have used this after my first child was born. I am so excited to implement a stronger focus on nutrition during my recovery this time around.
Ariana Carlson
RD, LDN
Ariana put together the actual content and explanations, and I included products and ideas that I am currently utilizing in my recent postpartum journey (that came sooner than expected!)
Postpartum Nutrition
Ariana Carlson, RD, LDN
“During postpartum, a mother’s body is not only recovering and healing from birthing a child, but it is also still undergoing many changes”
The 4th trimester. The trimester that often gets overlooked. During postpartum, a mother’s body is not only recovering and healing from birthing a child, but it is also still undergoing many changes. During this period, your body is restoring itself after nine months of shifting organs around, growing a baby and placenta, increasing its own blood supply by over 50%, restoring lost micronutrients that were prioritized to your baby, and is adjusting to new levels of hormones, including hormones to produce milk for your newborn. It is not just a basic recovery that you can snap your fingers and return to your old self. This period of time requires a great deal of self-care and self-love. One controllable factor during this critical time of healing and change is nutrition. Focusing on nutrition during this time can help facilitate a quicker and smoother recovery and also help combat the risk of postpartum depression and anxiety. Here are 10 ways to optimize your nutrition throughout postpartum to aid in healing and recovery.
Hydration.
Maintaining proper hydration is essential during the postpartum period and throughout breastfeeding. It not only helps flush out toxins, but also aids in tissue healing, hormone rebalancing, and can help increase and maintain breast milk production. Dehydration can also lead to dizziness, constipation and fatigue/lack of energy. Focusing on fluid intake can also help combat the symptoms related to sleep deprivation. Aim to get ½ of your body weight in pounds of fluid ounces from water (ideally), 100% fruit juice, dairy or non-dairy milk and/or hydrating fruits/vegetables.KECIA’S FAVORITE HYDRATION SUPPLEMENTS: LMNT electrolytes, a little pricey but worth every penny. Our family loves these. I am currently drinking about two a day. Another great options is Organika Electrolytes
Don’t count calories, make the calories count.
Your body just grew and sustained life within itself for 9 months. It then proceeds to go through the labor and delivery process. Whether it be a big surgery like a c-section or a vaginal delivery your body has gone through trauma. This healing and recovery process requires energy (calories) and more than we typically need on a normal daily basis to aid in our healing. The most important part of your postpartum diet is making sure your body gets enough calories every day. Focus on nutrient-dense foods. It can be hard to even find time to eat as a new mother, or a mother with multiple children, so it is important to keep healthy, nutrient-dense snacks on hand to help give your body the energy to expedite the healing process (and give you energy when your running on little sleep) so you can get back to feeling like yourself again both physically and mentally. *Take note, if you are lactating, the calories and nutrients consumed by food will first go to your breast milk before it goes to you, so it is extremely important to increase your caloric intake to ensure both you and baby are getting enough. Every individual is different, but you can generally aim to consume between 300 and 500 more calories per day than you did before you were pregnant all throughout the recovery period and while lactating.KECIA’S APPROACH: I am not using any sort of calorie tracking system. I am simply eating what I want, when I want. I eat a bar in the middle of the night almost every night because I feel like my body needs something even while I am sleeping with the amount of energy breastfeeding takes from me. I will not worry at all about calories in terms of body composition until I feel stable in our feeding routine.
Focus on Protein.
Throughout postpartum you should try to eat at least 25 additional grams of protein every day (daily needs vary per individual; typical protein needs: 0.8-1.0g/kg of body weight). Protein is a vital macronutrient to help your body recover from giving birth. It helps promote cell growth and restoration, and has potential benefits to increase immune function in your baby. Focus on lean sources of meat, eggs, nuts, beans, fish, milk, yogurt, and tofu.KECIA’S GO TO PROTEINS: hard boiled eggs - super easy as a grab n go, trail mix - a little chocolate in my nuts please, chickpea products - I love chickpea pasta, I just don’t over do it as it can make me (and baby) gassy as my digestive system re-calibrates, salmon - it’s officially grilling season and grilled salmon is happening at least twice a week, greek yogurt - a staple. plain, with fruit, in smoothies, my body is loving this option.
Iron-rich foods.
Iron is what helps your body make new blood cells, and is also a mineral that is often depleted after pregnancy and birth due to increased blood volume to provide for a fetus and the loss of blood from delivery. It is also an important nutrient for lactating women because it is depleted from our bodies to provide for our growing newborn. Iron can be found in red meat and poultry, eggs, dried fruit, lentils/beans and leafy green vegetables.KECIA’S GO TOs: I check this box with smoothies -- adding big handfuls of frozen spinach and/or kale and even frozen broccoli… I find it easier to digest in a drinkable format that getting these foods in as salads.
Consume Calcium.
Calcium is very important to replenish throughout postpartum because, if we did not regularly consume sources of calcium throughout pregnancy, our calcium stores from our bones were given up to provide for our growing fetus. This can result in brittle bones and teeth, along with an increase in injuries as we continue to age. If you are lactating, it is important to try to consume 1,000mg of calcium per day to additionally protect yourself from bone loss during lactation and provide calcium for newborn bone development. Dairy products such as milk, yogurt and cheese are good sources of calcium, along with non-dairy fortified milks and yogurts, leafy green vegetables, fortified orange juice, and canned sardines/salmon (preferably with bones).KECIA’S GO TOs: Canned salmon, except my husband has to mix it up with some other ingredients like celery, EVOO, and mayo otherwise I simply can’t with the bones even though they are completely edible. Again, greek yogurt helps me accomplish this one. I don’t drink cow’s milk, but I love cheese. Still waiting for my digestive system to fully reboot before bombarding it with cheese.
Fiber-rich foods.
It takes time for your organs to arrange back into their original location in the body after giving birth which can result in constipation and pain with bowel movements. Constipation is a very common issue amongst postpartum women and increasing fiber along with fluid intake can help relieve and prevent those issues. Fiber is found in whole grains such as oats, whole grain breads, brown rice, quinoa and barley, as well as fruits and vegetables.KECIA’S GO TOs: you all know I love my oatmeal — I add natural peanut butter, berries, and granola. here are a couple super easy packaged kinds for quick kid-wrangling mornings: gluten free coconut oats, raisin & spice high fibre oats. I also love adding cooked sweet potato to breakfast bowls, smoothies, or just eating them with pb and cinnamon - super filling and nutritionally dense.
Mood boosting foods.
It is no secret that new mothers are at high risk of developing postpartum depression and anxiety. Between adjusting hormones, sleep deprivation, change in identity and lack of time to focus on mental and/or physical health, it is a perfect storm waiting to come at you. It is proven that diet and nutrition can have a large impact on PPD/PPA and high-quality diets are correlated with feel-good hormones, such as serotonin and dopamine, that can help boost your mood. A few mood boosting foods include colorful fruits and vegetables, healthy fats found in nuts/seeds, beans/lentils and fatty fish, and whole grains. Focus on staying away from highly processed foods with refined grains and sugars as they are correlated with increased feelings of anxiety and depression.
- KECIA’S GO TOs: I am a treat girl, I craved scones and breads my entire pregnancy, and I definitely still get joy out of the baked goods section at the coffee shop. Smoothies are mood boosting for me, especially when someone else makes them haha…in fact any food that someone else makes for me boosts my mood.Omega-3s and DHA.
Not only can healthy fat combat PPD/PPA, but if you are lactating, they are essential to your developing newborn. You can find DHA in a variety of nuts and seeds, fish, eggs, and healthy oils. You can also choose to supplement with fish oil or algae omega oil to help meet your growing needs.- KECIA’S GO TOs: pumpkin seeds on salads and smoothie bowls, mixed nuts, tuna snack pack (processed, but so easy to throw in the diaper bag), seed crackers, avocado egg salad recipe by Rachaels Good Eats.
Eat balanced snacks and meals consistently.
The more consistently you fuel your body the less likely you are to have a dip in blood sugar which can result in fatigue, irritability, brain fog, and dizziness. Focus on meals and snacks that help stabilize your blood sugar giving you consistent energy throughout the day. Try to include a lean protein option and complex carbohydrate at meals and snacks and avoid waiting any longer than 2-3 hours between each.- KECIA’S APPROACH: I still use the rule of alternating — which is essentially just trying to make the next best choice after you have something that may not be the “best” in terms of nutrition. For example if I get a scone from the coffee shop, my aim to have a protein rich option or whole food option for my next snack or meal. This practice helps encourage more awareness with what we are consuming without needing to label foods or feel badly about certain choices.
Be kind to yourself.
It took 9 months to grow and sustain a life within you. We cannot expect to heal and return to our pre-pregnancy selves overnight. It takes time, patience and a lot of self-love to get there. Remember, if you don’t take care of yourself first, you cannot be your best version for your child(ren) and family. Rest, drink a lot of water and try to eat as many whole, real foods as you can.I hope you find this helpful! It’s always smart to prep some foods for your postpartum experience so that you have easily accessible options that will promote healing (and make life easier). I didn’t get to prep as much as I had liked because Mac came almost 2 weeks early. But here are a couple things I did make and have in my freezer:
Salmon Burger Patties for grilling when my husband makes his meat of choice
Breakfast sandwiches - egg, english muffin, cheddar cheese, and veggie sausage. I add avocado after I reheat it
Rice based veggie soup
Power balls - recipe below
I want to thank Ari for her insights and energy towards this mini-project! It’s so nice to have someone with both experience and professional knowledge guiding us through this 4th trimester.