By Dr. Carrie Clark

We all know we are what we eat and at no time during a women’s life is she more aware of this than when she is pregnant. But what about the 4^th trimester? That critical first few months after birth that can be very stressful? What should you eat to heal from labor? To nurse? To be able to be up all night with a fussy baby? Does it matter?

 

Not only does it matter, it matters just as much as when you were pregnant. Just as with adults, babies are what they eat so to optimize nutrition in breast milk, heal from labor, and handle the increased stress you need to get enough of critical and essential nutrients.

 

Protein is needed for milk production, healing, and neurotransmitter production. As Julia Ross states in her book The Diet Cure, “These isolated protein fragments are the miracle foods that your brain uses to make its most powerful pleasure chemicals: serotonin-your natural Prozac; dopamine/norepinephrine-your natural cocaine; endorphin-naturally stronger than heroin; and GABA-naturally more relaxing than Valium.”

 

Where do we get these proteins? Animal sources are the only way to get complete proteins so needed at this critical time. 20- 30 grams per meal.

 

Saturated Fats and Cholesterol are needed for healing, hormone production, and utilizing neurotransmitters. “Cholesterol is nature’s repair substance used to repair wounds including tears,” states the Weston A. Price Foundation. The hormones used to deal with stress are made from cholesterol also.

 

The best sources are butter (grass-fed is best), coconut oil (organic and unrefined), and lard and tallow from pastured animals.

 

Minerals are needed in greater quantities in times of stress. A few are listed below.

·       Calcium is needed by the nervous system. Sugar consumption and stress pull it       from the bones. The best sources are dairy products and bone broths.

·       Chloride is utilized in the production of hydrochloric acid production which helps digest proteins. Good sources are bone broths, zucchini, and sea salt.

·       Magnesium is used in greater quantities when simple carbohydrate consumption is increased. Nuts are a good source and also provide fat and protein.

 

An example of a diet that provides good quantities of the above:

 

Breakfast :

2 eggs fried in butter or lard with salsa and sour cream and chives along with nitrate-free sausage.

 

Lunch:

Large salad of mixed greens with grilled meat (steak, chicken, or fish), cheese and nuts. Olive oil dressing.

 

Dinner:

Grilled chicken with potatoes, garlic, and onions served with butter and sea salt.

Lacto-fermented vegetable such as sauerkraut

 

As every mother knows, it would be wonderful to prepare, then sit down and eat 3 meals a day.  But most days it is an impossibility. Until those amazing meals arrive from friends and neighbors, I have a list of ideas for shortcut meals and snacks that can be eaten one handed with baby spit up in your hair.

 

·       Popcorn popped on the stove in coconut oil or lard covered with a generous amount of butter and sea salt

·       Uncured grass-fed beef sticks (Anderson Farm in WI have amazing ones)

·       Cheese curds

·       Full fat grass-fed yoghurt with berries

·       Sauerkraut – lacto-fermented veggies help fight yeast overgrowth

·       Guacamole and chips with salsa and sour cream

·       Veggies dipped in dressing – Wilderness Family Naturals have ones with great fats

·       Lunch meat with mayo and lacto-fermented pickles (again, Anderson Farms meat and Wilderness Family Naturals mayo)

·       Coconut water is a great beverage available at all co-ops. High in minerals

·       Trail Mix (coconut chips, crispy almonds, golgi berries, and blueberries is a favorite combination)

·       Hard boiled eggs

 

The most important food a mother can take and give to her children starting as an infant is Cod Liver Oil. One of the few left on the market that has natural vitamins in it is Green Pastures.

 

Feeding your brain and body is one of the best ways to make the first few months of being a new mom an easier transition. True health for all of us comes from the inside out.

 

If you’re not the pregnant one, here is a good bread to bring to a friend postpartum or make ahead and freeze.

 

Banana Nut/Chocolate Chip Bread*

¹/₃ cup coconut oil

¹/₃ cup coconut sugar or Rapadura

2 eggs

1 ³/₄ cups sprouted flour

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp sea salt

1 cup (about 2 medium) mashed ripe bananas

½ cup crispy walnuts

½ cup soy-free dark organic chocolate chips

 

Cream together coconut oil and sugar; add eggs and beat well. Sift together dry ingredients; add creamed mixture alternately with banana, blending well after each addition.

 

Pour into well buttered 9x5x3 inch loaf pan and bake at 350° for 45-50 minutes or until done. Remove from pan; cool on rack.

 

*Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book

 

www.westonaprice.org

www.wildernessfamilynaturals.com

www.andersonfarm.us

www.greenpasture.org