"Bad" foods to eat whilst breastfeeding?

Hi ladies

I have been looking in the forums and articles and can't find an answer *but* it could be baby brain, I don't deny that.

Was just wondering if there are certain foods I should avoid once I start BF so they don't affect the BM? eg I have heard that garlic goes straight through and I can't imagine that would make it taste that great?

Reason I'm asking now is that I'm looking at making a freezer full of food for the arrival of bubs over the next few months so I'm all prepared (well in the food department at least!) and have found heaps of recipes I want to make but most have garlic (and I love it so). So that made me wonder if I should be using garlic and also if there is anything else that could do the same?

thanks

I ate everything and I mean everything when I was BF and it didn't seem to have any effect on Bubs. I am a garlic lover too, and at it while BF. I do know of people who avoided things like Dairy and Nuts as their was a history of those allergies in the family and also possible reactions with baby like wind.
Someone may came in with foods to avoid. Marcellus is usually a good one on these and of course Barb Glare :)

I never restricted myself whilst BF & never encountered any problems. But I know some Mums that couldn't eat chocolate or orange juice.

I only found in the first 3 months, foods like broccoli and cauliflower and chocolate would make bub unsettled, didnt stop me eating them though. after that it didnt seem to bother him at all.
I read an interesting article a while back about how BF bubs have a greater tolerance for a wider range of foods and tastes due to being exposed to them in the mothers breast milk, making them less picky eaters. DS will now eat just about anything. LOL :)

I ate everything while I was breastfeeding. That includes coffee although I did avoid caffeine in the afternoon (still do even when I'm not breastfeeding) I think that missing out on things while you're breastfeeding isn't conducive to a long term breastfeeding relationship.

There is no special list of foods to avoid when bfing. It's best to assume that you can eat everything - most mums can and it's good for babies to get used to a variety of tastes. It makes for a better eater down the track. If you find you have an unsettled baby then looking at your diet is one of the things you can try, but there's no need to cross bridges if and until you come to them.

Have you booked in for a Breastfeeding Education Class yet? This is the very best preparation you can do for a successful breastfeeding relationship. Have a look on the ABA website - www.breastfeeding.asn.au and see if you can find one near you. If not, go to "Contact Us" and put in your postcode to find your local group contact person - they will be able to let you know if there are any that aren't listed on the website - often they are not all there. Mums who attend these sessions find them very much worth it.

^^ yeah that!

I ate absolutely everything and nothing affected my baby. He eats everything now too (at 13 months) chilli, curry, garlic... Everything.

The only thing I have found that affects DD so far is if I eat Penut Butter. 3 times now i've had penut butter and she is really unsettled and gets a sore tummy, so I think I might have to avoid it :dunno: but I eat everything else.

I'm like the others and have eaten everything, including lots of garlic/chilli etc only thing that really did upset her once early on was a minestrone my DH cooked but he did bit of a cabbage overkill :)

thanks so much for all of your replies so far. Manta Ray - I didn't know there were breastfeeding classes, I will look into it!

Only thing I found affected both my bubs was chocolate mint slice biscuits lol. Didn't stop me tho (bad mummy that I am haha). Gave them windy tummy aches :/

I wasn't drinking caffeine or alcohol, out of habit more than anything, from ttc and pregnancy, so don't know if that would gave affected them at all.

But curries and chilli and garlic etc I didn't tone down at all.

Dairy affected my bub for a few weeks but that settled down again. Everything else was all good. I would just cook meals you like.

No issues here either!

I don't like super spicy food anyhow, but loooove garlic and it made no difference that I ever noticed.