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Can I breastfeed my mother for milk?

, medical expert
Last reviewed: 16.10.2021
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Milk and breastfeeding are a common reason for discussions among mothers about the benefits, harm and necessity of this product. There are many different versions of the fact that milk increases lactation, but this is not entirely true. Therefore, you need to know what causes problems, and what essential nutrients have milk for a newborn baby.

Negative reactions when milk is used by nursing mothers

The period of breastfeeding is the moment when mother gives her baby all the useful substances that come to him during feeding. And of course every mother wants that with milk the child is given all the most useful vitamins, minerals and trace elements. Therefore, the ration of a young mother at the time when she is feeding the baby should include such foods that are most useful for the baby. Many people are interested in the question of whether whole-breast milk can be fed to a nursing mother, and if so, which product should be preferred? This question is discussed by many mothers, and judging from their experience, all cases are highly individual.

Milk is a product that has proteins in its composition, as well as carbohydrates in the form of lactose and many minerals - calcium, phosphorus, iron, manganese. The benefit of such a product is indisputable for any person. But in case a woman is breastfeeding, such a composition can not only be beneficial, but can be dangerous. Can I drink milk to nursing mothers? A unambiguous answer to this question is difficult to give, because the approach is very individual. But in any case, milk to nursing mothers can be, if there is no proven negative impact on the child. The issue of a moderate amount of milk is also important, so that no negative effects are manifested.

What kind of problems can mom face if she has milk in her diet? First of all, these are allergic reactions and lactose intolerance to a child.

The problem of the child's allergy to the milk protein is actually not common. Therefore, if the family does not have any reactions to milk, then the mother should not refuse milk in advance. In fact, avoiding cow's milk by a breast-feeding mother can even increase the baby's chance to develop allergies to cow's milk. Mothers who drink cow's milk have a higher level of secretory IgA in breast milk. Breast milk with high IgA blocks the absorption of undigested cow milk protein by intestinal cells. Therefore, the risk of developing such an allergy is somewhat reduced. Thus, lactating mothers who are not allergic to milk should drink cow's milk.

Allergy to milk in infants is much less common than many people think, and milk intolerance is even rarer. Even more confused is the question that many people do not know the difference between allergies and intolerance to milk.

Allergy to milk: in the presence of such an allergy in infants, the child's immune system reacts negatively to proteins contained in milk. If a child is only breastfed, it reacts to the milk that his mother ate. In any case, the immune system treats milk proteins as foreign substances, and in its efforts to fight the invaders the body releases histamine and other chemicals that cause allergic symptoms in the body.

Intolerance to milk has nothing to do with cow's milk proteins or with the immune system. This happens when a child can not digest sugar in milk (lactose). That's why milk intolerance is also called lactose intolerance. Lactose is sugar in milk. The amount of lactose in breast milk does not depend on the consumption of lactose by the mother and practically does not change. The milk that the baby receives when he first begins to eat the breast contains as much lactose as the milk at the end of breastfeeding.

Lactase is an enzyme that is necessary for the digestion of lactose. Lactose intolerance arises when a person does not produce this enzyme or produces enough of it, and therefore is not able to digest lactose. If it is not digested and not destroyed, it can not be absorbed. If this happens, lactose continues in the digestive tract until it enters the large intestine. It is here that bacteria destroy it, forming acids and gases.

Symptoms of lactose intolerance are liquid, sometimes green, foamy discharge and an irritable child who has colic due to gas. Congenital lactose intolerance (milk intolerance in infants from birth) is an extremely rare metabolic condition. Lactose intolerance often develops in older children and adults. The only source of calcium, in this case, may be lactose milk for the nursing mother. Is it possible for the nursing mother to have cow's milk in this case? If your child has such a sensitivity, then yes - if you drink or consume dairy products, this can cause different violations in your child. The severity of the food reaction is usually related to the degree of sensitivity of the child and the amount of problem food that mom ate - the more food consumed, the stronger the reaction. Nutritional reactions can occur within a few minutes, but the symptoms in infants often appear 4-24 hours after milk intake by the mother. If the child has suspicious symptoms associated with allergies, for example: bloating and colic, diarrhea, constipation, itching of the skin and a red rash, swollen eyes, face or lips, problems with weight gain, the intake of cow's milk should be stopped completely before further examination. What is the possibility of using goat's milk for a nursing mother in this case? If there is a confirmed diagnosis of an allergy to a cow's milk protein, there may be a cross-reaction to goat's milk, so it can not be taken.

If you think that your child may be sensitive to dairy products in your diet, remember that to eliminate protein cow's milk from your body may take 10 to 3 weeks, and until complete protein removal - need 2-3 weeks. If your child is sensitive to milk proteins, you can save the child from the symptoms by eliminating only the obvious sources of dairy products. These include milk, cream, yogurt, butter, cheese, sour cream, ice cream, cottage cheese.

If your child has a severe allergy, it is necessary to eliminate all sources of milk proteins, which requires careful reading of the label with food. In certain cases, it is impossible to drink home-made milk and shop milk during a sharp period. Also, it is not recommended to consume soya milk to a nursing mother, because there are cross reactions. Special care must be taken in case of taking cookies, sweets, cereals in the diet, because they can have traces of milk powder in their composition, and dry and melted milk can not be taken to the nursing mother with confirmed allergy. If you remove dairy products from the diet, because your baby with breastfeeding is sensitive to cow's milk proteins, you can reintroduce it step by step in a few months. Many milk-sensitive children outgrow their sensitivity in 6-18 months, and most of them outgrow completely in 3 years. To start, to expand the diet, you can start a mother that breastfeeds, drink tea, coffee, cocoa or neskvik with milk. If after two days there is no reaction in the child, then you can switch to a more frequent use of milk. In the future it is recommended to drink breastfeeding milk to the nursing mother with the gradual introduction of concentrated milk.

What kind of dairy products can be taken to nursing mothers?

The most important question is whether it is possible for a nursing mother to drink shop-made pasteurized milk or give preference to a home-made milk? The answer is unequivocal - if the child does not have undesirable reactions, which were considered above, then you can take milk any - either home or shop. Preferences are individual, and the benefits and contents of trace elements in different types of milk are almost identical.

If there are weak reactions from the baby, you can eliminate whole milk, but leave some dairy products. For example, you can use cottage cheese, kefir, or prepare pancakes or an omelette with milk. This concentration of milk will not allow the development of unwanted reactions in the newborn. Is it possible to breastfeed a mother with milk or buckwheat with milk? Definitely, that is possible, because boiled milk is considered less allergenic than whole milk. Is it possible to flake milk with a mother who breastfeeds, if there are no reactions in the child? This combination can be dangerous because an allergic reaction can potentially develop into gluten, so it is sometimes difficult to determine what the child is responding to. In such cases, you can take the products separately to determine this. And if you eat cereal with milk, and the child feels great, then you can continue so on.

There is much discussion about whether it is possible to eat condensed milk to the mother who feeds the baby. Some say that it increases lactation and milk quantity in a woman, to which there is no scientific evidence. Condensed milk has a lot of saturated fats, which are harmful to the body of the mother, and can lead to the synthesis of fat. This is a very undesirable effect for a woman. Therefore, it is allowed to take condensed milk in a moderate amount to a breastfeeding mother, but there is not much benefit from it.

Is it possible to breastfeed mother milk? If the baby has strong manifestations of milk allergy, then no products with traces of the milk formula can not be consumed, including dry. As for coconut milk, it is a plant extract that does not cause such reactions, so it is allowed to take it. It is also often asked whether a nursing mother is allowed honey and milk? Honey is a strong allergen, and in children of the first half of life can cause strong reactions. Therefore, if the family has cases of allergy to honey, then definitely should not risk.

Speaking about the presence in the diet of a young mother of milk during breastfeeding, it is necessary to clearly understand that dairy products must necessarily be in the diet every day. Whole milk can potentially cause intolerance, in which case its use is limited. But over time it can be used in the diet in a certain amount, replacing the remaining needs for calcium with other dairy products.

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