Health Tip: Do's and Don'ts While Breastfeeding

(HealthDay News) -- Since a new mother''s diet can affect her breast milk, what a breast-feeding mother eats can be as important as when she was pregnant.

Here are dietary suggestions for breast-feeding women, courtesy of the American Academy of Family Physicians:

• Do eat a well balanced diet of plenty of fruits, vegetables, beans or meats, and whole grains.
• Do get plenty of calcium via dairy foods like milk and cheese. Talk to your doctor about calcium supplements and other ways to get more calcium.
• Do eat more calories than normal -- about 500 more per day -- and increase your fluid intake.
• Don''t take any medications without talking to your doctor.
• Don''t smoke.
• Don''t use alcohol or caffeine.
• Don''t eat foods that seem to bother your baby.

-- Diana Kohnle

Last Updated: Sept. 14, 2007

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