by Lorraine Carter

Created on: January 03, 2011   Last Updated: January 04, 2011

Remember how you were eating when you were pregnant? Most nutritionists suggest that you keep eating that way if you are nursing. You ate more and more of the right things when you were pregnant because you weren’t just feeding yourself, but feeding that life growing inside you too. Things haven’t changed except you are feeding your little life in a different way now.

Nutritionists suggest that if you normally eat three meals a day, to add a fourth meal. It will take at least 500 more calories a day to develop enough milk to feed that little bundle of joy. A nursing mother should also increase her fluid intake which should include vegetable juices, dairy products, water and herbal teas. You need to stay hydrated and so does the baby.

Dairy products are important when nursing a child. A nursing mother should have at least four servings of dairy a day. Suggestions for this would be milk, cottage cheese, cheese and other dairy based products. You should also eat iron rich foods, and talk to your doctor about taking Vitamin B Complex supplements each day. This is a growing child and he/she needs all of these to continue to grow healthy.

Here are just a few other tips for nursing mothers.

Drink some liquid after every time you feed the baby. You need to keep hydrated. Some nutritionists suggest you increase your water intake by one quart a day.

Make sure you are eating at least 2500 calories. Eat a lot of fresh fruits, vegetables and dairy so the baby will get all the vitamins, iron and calcium it needs.

Stay away from anything that will transfer through your milk: alcohol, tobacco, drugs.

Make sure to get some exercise each day to boost your energy

Also, if you aren’t feeling well, if you think you have the flu, a cold, or something like bronchitis, you shouldn’t breast feed until you are past it.

Be sure to get the right amount of sleep. Even though you will have to get up every few hours to feed this new little baby, lay down when you are tired. Take a couple naps a day if you need to. When the baby's feedings start getting further apart, and eventually they sleep through the night, you will be able to go back to a regular sleeping schedule.

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