World Breastfeeding Week: Foods nursing mothers should not eat!

Zee Media Bureau

New Delhi: You must have heard a lot of things on what to and what not to eat during breastfeeding. The fact is that there really aren't hard and fast rules as some nursing moms find they can eat whatever the like, whereas it may not be the same for some mothers. That's because some babies would be fussy at the breast or gassy after a monther eats a particular food.

In such cases, mothers should avoid that food for a few days. Here are some foods that breastfeeding moms should avoid as babies often object to these foods:

• Spices such as cinnamon, garlic, curry, chili pepper
• Chocolate
• Citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruit and their juices
• Strawberries
• Kiwifruit
• 'Gassy' veggieslike onion, cabbage, garlic, cauliflower, broccoli, cucumbers, and peppers, etc.
• Caffeine - avoid too much caffeine as this can interfere with your baby's sleep.
• Alcohol – it seems okay to have occassional drink, but you should not have more than one drink as alcohol can affect baby's eating and sleeping.
• High-mercury fish such as shark, swordfish, king mackerel, tilefish, etc, as they can affect baby's brain.