Giving birth is one of the most physically demanding things you experience in your life and it is natural to feel tired. So, when you get home from hospital try to ensure you have help at hand from friends and family. Don’t be tempted to rush around doing all of the chores you previously did.

Your main job is to get plenty of rest and healthy food so you can give your baby the best start in life.  Do not immediately focus on how to lose the weight gained during pregnancy.  For some it disappears in weeks and for others it can take much longer. Regular eating habits and exercise can help lead you in the right direction.

Breastfeeding is a great way to give your baby the right fuel for growth.  However, being a milk production factory is a high energy affair and this with broken nights can be exhausting. It is essential for all mothers who are breast feeding to obtain nutrients from a varied diet and to drink about 2 litres of fluid per day to maintain their milk production. Anxiety and uncertainty can drain your resources too especially if this is your first baby so get all the professional help you can from your nursing support.  You can also contact the Natural Childbirth Trust, www.nct.co.uk or The La Leche League, www.laleche.org.uk for further information and support on breastfeeding.

You need a healthy diet now more than ever.  Your baby is the product of all the food she/he has drawn from you during pregnancy and now good and sufficient milk supply is vital too the healthy development of your child. Here are some tips for nursing mothers from Heather Lyons, physically-fit’s nutrition counsellor.

HEALTHY TIPS

1. Eat plenty of organic vegetables (four daily) and fruits (three).  These provide valuable soluble fibre and anti-oxidants to fight cell damage.

2. Drink filtered or pure mineral water 8 glasses day.   This helps detoxification and provides enough fluids for lactation.

3 Avoid coffee completely, and restrict tea to three a day. Stimulants and alcohol will give the liver extra work and may hinder your relaxation.

4. Snack on fresh pumpkin and sunflower seeds almonds and walnuts, these provide oils and valuable minerals like zinc and chromium

5. Use fibre rich foods like beans and lentils to add to meat dishes and high fibre oats or brown rice rather than white flour.

6. Eat plenty of oily fish for healthy oils (wild tinned salmon is fine), white meat and game are better than high fat red meat or processed meats.

7.  Too much sugar will encourage depressing dips in energy and carbohydrate binging, avoid any added sugar-nature’s best is natural fruit.

8.  If you think your baby is reacting to a food you are eating avoid it completely for six weeks and see if it makes any difference.  But watch out for onions, pickles, spices and wheat a common allergen.  

Many people benefit from taking a good quality multivitamin (for nursing mums), it should contain 15 mg of zinc, 10 mg of iron, 500mg of calcium, 250 magnesium and 1gm of vitamin C.  In addition, I advise you to add a tablespoon of ground flax seeds for oil content and soft fibre.