Sometimes, a mother can be the cause behind a baby’s lactose intolerance. Some foods taken by the mother can be problematic and reduce the fat intake or result in high lactose intake in the baby. This is especially the case with just-born, breastfeeding babies as they rely only on their mother’s milk for sustenance. Of course, breast milk is the best food a baby can get, but sometimes, inadequate fat content or excess watery content in it can make breast milk a source of trouble for the baby. This article will focus on the foods a mother needs to take/avoid in order to keep a healthy balance between foremilk/hindmilk in her system.
Problem-foods for mothers/babies: Several of the foods a mom takes can be problematic to the baby. If you find out that your baby suffers because of the feed, then, you need to conduct a thorough check up of what you eat and how your baby reacts to that. Better if you maintain a food journal noting down the reactions your baby has for foods you give it.
Cow’s milk: Don’t take a lot of dairy foods especially if you know that your baby is lactose intolerant or has lactose malabsorption. If your baby has milk protein allergy, the symptoms maybe severe. The rashes on its body maybe a result of you having 2 scoops of ice cream.
Other suspect foods: If a baby, which is otherwise normal, displays sudden symptoms or illness, you need to suspect the foods that the mother has taken recently. The food in question could be one a family member is allergic to or a large amount of food the mom recently ate or a new food the mom had pr a food that mom doesn’t like but took just for the sake of the baby etc. The last one is true as conscious likes and dislikes too play a part in the baby’s food allergy symptoms.
Foods to avoid: Most of the babies are not lactose intolerant. It is just that they fail to get the adequate fat and sugar content that is needed to help in the digestion of the lactose in mother’s milk. If you are a breastfeeding mother, you can take/avoid certain foods to keep your breast milk high in fat and low in sugars. This is because foremilk/hindmilk balance is needed for the baby’s growth and you, as a mother, need to regulate your diet for that sake.
When your diet is full of simple sugars and too little fat, avoid the following:
- 100% fruit juice
- Soft drinks
- Too much of fresh or dried fruit
- Honey, Jam, Golden Syrup
- Chocolates
- Biscuits
- Cakes
- Desserts
- Salad Sandwiches
If you need to exclude dairy products from your diet on account of your baby’s lactase deficiency, avoid the following:
- Cow milk cereals
- Cheese
- Yogurt
- Butter
- Italian/French type of cooking
- Ice creams
- Custards
- White sauces
- Lactose medications
Foods mothers need to take: You can substitute your food with the following in order to achieve a proper balance of low-fat foremilk and high fat hindmilk:
- Diluted fresh juice
- Coffee/Tea beverages instead of soft drinks
- Fish, meat, egg spreads
- Peanut butter
- Sardines, Salmon
- Canned fish
- Sliced meats/poultry
- Nuts, seed mixes
- Corn chips, Potato chips
- Chicken/Meat sandwiches
- Sausage rolls
- Meat pies
- Oysters or boiled eggs
- Smoked mussels
- Roast meals
- Cornflower sauces
- Coconut milk, soy milk, rice milk
- Sea food
- Ham, creamed corn, bacon
- Hard cheeses
