After having a baby that feeds on your milk, planning a healthy diet becomes a must. As the newborn's nutrition directly depends on what you eat, here is a sample diet following the Australian dietary guidelines that you can follow to make sure you’re getting all the nutrition you need. This sample is made for women between 19 and 50 years to maintain their healthy weight and activity.

Breakfast

When you get up early, you’ll need to get something that boosts your energy and gives you nutrition.

Try a 60-gm wholegrain cereal bowl with a cup of reduced-fat milk and a cup of a reduced fat yogurt.

Morning break

A couple of hours later you can have a cup of coffee with milk

Did you know? Coffee is a rich source of antioxidants and is known to improve moods and stop headaches.

Lunch

A healthy balanced meal would be equivalent to a sandwich made of two slices of bread, 40gm roasted chicken, 1 tbsp margarine and a cup of veggies. Choose a healthy dessert like 1 medium apple.

Afternoon break

If you're a working mother, it’s a good idea to take a small handful of mixed nuts to eat them in addition to a cup of coffee with milk.

Evening Meal

A healthy meal to satisfy your hunger after a long day consists of 1 cup of cooked pasta with lean beef mince, ½ cup of onion, red kidney beans, and Green salad with tomato, olive oil, and vinegar dressing.

Evening snack

At night, you’ll need to eat something that gives you nutrition without making you lazy in the next morning.

Try a bowl of fruit salad and 100g reduced fat yogurt

TIPS:

• When planning a healthy diet, aim for eating more frequent meals in small amounts rather than 3 heavy meals.
• Breastfeeding mothers and pregnant women will need up to 500 calories more than the others.
• Don’t forget to drink plenty of water throughout the day.

What’s your favorite meal? And what do you like to eat during that meal?

Resources:

New Mom’s Guide to Nutrition After Childbirth - WebMD

The Buzz on Coffee - WebMD

www.eatforhealth.gov.au