Vitamin Supplements for a Vegan Breastfeeding Mom

A Vegan Mom

When you’re a mom, you need all the strength in the world to take care of your children, aside from the households demands and the many day to day little problems you need to face. I started my vegan dieting five years ago and had my last baby three years ago (I was not into veganism in my first pregnancies, so I don’t have any fears or worries about vegan diet and nutrients). When I had my last baby, the thought that comes into my mind is that, I feared that my baby isn’t having much nutrients and cant receive all the necessary nutrient requirements because "vegan diet" itself is controversial in that it is not a sufficient diet, so I asked my doctor about it and they told me that it is possible to breastfed even if you are a vegan. You just need to supplement with necessary vitamins like Vitamin D, Vitamin B12, Calcium, Zinc and Iron so that your baby will be healthy and can get all the necessary nutrients that a growing child needs. So it means that it is the same for a vegan diet person, a mom still needs to supplement for other nutrients necessary. Vitamin supplement is damned necessary for a breastfeeding vegan mom.

• Healthy living is very important for everyone at all ages. The foundations of a good health starts when you are still a “”thought” from your parents. That is why it is important to provide the best health for our child. Moms, should make sure that they are healthy even before conceiving, during and after pregnancy. After giving birth, if a woman decide to breastfed her baby, she must also make sure that she is healthy and make sure that she gets the nutrients needed for her to nurse a child. Breast Milk is the best for babies and taking care of your health is good if you decide to breastfed. Vitamin supplementation is also advised for women who are breastfeeding as it is deemed important to get all the necessary vitamins that we need not only for our recuperation after giving birth but because our baby’s health depend on us. I am a vegetarian, I eat vegetables but I consume milk and eggs as well.

• As a vegan breastfeeding mom, It is my responsibility to take care of my health and eat the proper foods needed by mo body and to consider the nutrients that my baby will get form me. I changed a lifestyle I had before, I sleep earlier and I don’t go near a smoker and seldom drink alcohols. A breastfeeding mom needs also to avoid this as it is not good for babies that you are breastfeeding.
• As a vegan mom, I realized that my baby will have additional needed nutrients for her to grow well and healthy, I studied all aspects of vegan diet and I am supplementing it with other nutrients like proteins, Iron, calcium, zinc and Vitamin B12 and Vitamin D.
• It is a challenge to raise a child and live a healthy life but it is the best that we can give to our children, -- total change of "lifestyle" specially with eating healthy foods and making sure that you have the needed nutrients for you and your baby.

• According to various organizations like La Leche International, an organization devoted to the research, studies about breastfeeding, it is safe to breastfeed even if you are a vegan, this is also seconded by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

According to the two agencies as well, a mother should be healthy and should have the necessary nutrients when breastfeeding a baby. A vegan breastfeeding mom needs to supplement their vegan diet with other necessary nutrients aside like :

1. Proteins are necessary for the growth of muscle tissue for the vegan breastfeeding mom and for supplements even if you’re not a vegan. You can get this from foods like animal products, cheese, and fish. For some areas which doesn’t have much fish and they are all frozen, they eat sardines and tuna in cans for needed protein.
2. Calcium is needed for the "bones" and for the quality of muscles of the mother and babies. Vitamin D is also needed as supplement. You can get Vitamin D from sunshine but it is best to supplement specially during winter. The risk of health problems related to bones as you grow older is higher. You need to supplement for Vitamin D specially for breastfeeding moms.
3. Iron is very essential for a new mom. A baby will become dull and not healthy if a mom is lacking in Iron. Vegetable is a rich source of Vitamin a which is essential to moms and baby alike. Green leafy vegetables and fruits is also needed.
4. Vitamin B specially B12 is very important for a vegan breastfeeding mom. Other sources for this nutrients are eggs, cereals, soy based beverages according to the USDA Nutrition department.
5. Zinc is very important nutrients and one source of it is milk products, soy beans and kidney beans. This nutrients are very important for immunity purposes.

Mostly as a vegan mom, I follow he needed food supplementation, but I still drink vitamins for the needed complete nutrients of my baby. You can never go wrong with a healthy diet and taking notes of the needed vitamin supplementation for a vegan breastfeeding mom.

Conclusion :

Even if we are not breastfeeding, a good health is necessary for a good life. Me, being a vegan breastfeeding mom, there is the necessity to take vitamin supplements because a vegan diet itself necessitates us to eat and supplement with other vitamins needed by the body. There is nothing like taking care of our children when we are healthy and have the peace of mind to take care of them because we know that we are giving them the best of care, and giving them proper nutrients is the best.