Learn more about Postpartum Nutrition:The Importance of BreastfeedingMinimizing Toxic Exposure Risks The Nature of Substance P Keeping a Positive Mood Your Child's Digestion and Immunity Optimizing Intelligence The Importance of BreastfeedingBreastfeeding is as important for your baby as it is for you. The process is designed to ensure survival of the human race and is thus woven into your genes and your baby's genes in a multitude of ways -- perfected over hundreds of thousands of years of evolution. No baby formula on earth can begin to approximate your milk or the activity of nursing. It is vitally important that your baby get your first milk colostrum within the first 24 hours of life. This first-milk colostrum contains a high amount of the hormone leptin which is required to finalize appetite signal wiring in the subconscious brain circuitry. A failure to get this nutrition can easily predispose your child to later life obesity and consequent heart disease. Colostrum also contains significant amounts of biologically active thyroid hormone (T3) that is vital for jump starting the high metabolic demands of the first two weeks of life. And colostrum contains a broad array of natural immune support compounds needed by your baby who does not yet have a high-powered and experienced immune system. In return, the activity of nursing is proven to offer you significantly improved stress tolerance, better mood, and natural fat burning. Relaxing anti-inflammatory compounds, including endorphins and oxytocin, are released in response to factors involved with delivery and reinforced by the physical stimulation of nursing and bonding. These are vital to your healing process in the first few weeks following delivery. Stress to mother or baby interferes with this process, and the process itself helps protect against stress. Breast milk is highly supportive of the development of a healthy digestive and immune system -- critical topics that support your child's health for a lifetime. These topics are discussed at further length in the information that follows. Nursing has a powerful mood elevating effect. When nursing is stopped mood often drops, especially in women who are nutritionally depleted due to stress or thyroid weakness. The nutrient most required for the production of milk is high quality protein -- with B vitamins coming in second. Women who are struggling to get started may need high amounts of these nutrients to get the system kick started, often at higher ranges for the first two-three days following delivery. Once in motion then protein levels and B vitamins can be set at an amount that noticeably supports adequate milk production. For example, 100 to 120 grams of protein a day may be needed to get milk production revved up -- after all you have just been through major wear and tear. I recommend two or more whey protein drinks a day -- at least for a few days, to get the needed protein. Daily Energy Multiple Vitamin may be needed up to six capsules per day, for a few days at least, to support this process. Tip -- Eat your highest fat meal of the day at night, the extra fatty acids that enter your milk will help your baby sleep longer during the night.
Minimizing Toxic Exposure RisksIt is a national tragedy that our food supply is contaminated with PCBs (courtesy of Monsanto, Westinghouse, General Electric, and others) and the rocket ignition fuel compound known as perchlorate (courtesy of the military). Both toxins accumulate in breast tissue and find their way into breast milk, as well as PCBs crossing the placenta during pregnancy. PCBs are neurotoxic and are linked to the increase in ADHD amongst children. Perchlorate binds to iodine receptors better than iodine -- dysregulating thyroid hormone function. The victims in these environmental crimes are babies, who are much more sensitive to these contaminants than adults. Cleaning up either problem would cost at least 50 billion dollars, which is why nothing every happens. It is likely that damaged health from both problems far exceeds the clean up costs -- especially as time marches on. Read chapters 13 and 14 in Fight for Your Health for the detailed history on perchlorate and PCBs. Perchlorate contaminates the water supply in California, Texas, and Florida -- causing produce (especially lettuce) and dairy products from these regions to be high in perchlorate. Samples of breast milk from around the country has confirmed that excess perchlorate in breast milk is a common societal problem with rather grave implications. Disturbing thyroid hormone function in an infant will have profound negative affects on cognitive function. Combined with exposure to PCBs it is a double-whammy lowering societal intelligence -- a catastrophic issue that big money lobbies are preventing any action on. Every nursing mother should seek to saturate breast tissue iodine receptors with iodine, in an effort not only to support thyroid function in her baby but to block perchlorate from binding to these receptors and consequently getting into her milk. I would recommend 2-3 drops of Iosol Iodine per day for any mother eating produce grown in the problem regions, otherwise 1 drop per day for general iodine and thyroid needs.*
The Nature of Substance PSubstance P is a new term for most people, though the neuropeptide was discovered 85 years ago. Substance P is intimately involved with pain, anxiety, and poor mood. Substance P is the main way your body processes pain and intense stress. Under routine stress, your body simply turns up the volume knob on nerve activity and energy production and when the stress is over everything is supposed to recover. Substance P is not used as a basic coping mechanism for low-grade stress. However, extra substance P kicks in when stress or pain is more intense -- such as during the birth of your child. If you have a good history with mood and stress management, a lack of previous traumas and pain, if you are fit entering pregnancy, if your life is relatively stable, and if you manage thyroid and stress issues well during pregnancy so that you are not completely worn out by the time you get to delivery -- then substance P issues are far less likely to cause problems for your mood following delivery. The simultaneous release of endorphins and oxytocin during the birth process are the natural counter-balancing agents for substance P. These natural pain killers are difficult to release in adequate amounts if you are worn down and nerves are depleted of energy. This can leave substance P levels too high in the days following birth, especially if your health history has earlier problems relating to substance P. Because substance P is also processed in your brain stem, it cross talks to the glial cells of your brain in turn interfering with thyroid function, stress hormones (the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis), as well as directly mucking up the flow of neurotransmitters -- all three factors can be significant mood challenges. You can tell when a substance P problem is ramping up because anxiety levels increase, sleep is disturbed even though you are really tired, and you generally start feeling like a cat on a hot tin roof. The extremely vulnerable time for initial substance P problems is within the first two weeks of delivery -- the critical recovery time from the pain and wear of giving birth. During this time nerves are often the most "raw feeling.” Nature's remedy for this is breastfeeding, which sustains the release in the mother of both endorphins and oxytocin. Nutrients can be quite helpful. The natural brakes on substance P release in the brain stem are regulated by magnesium and glycine. I use a combination of both in a product called RelaxaMag to help sleep (2-3 can be taken before bed). When this natural braking system is taxed then histamine is released in the brain stem, setting into motion the excessive substance P flare up. The release of histamine further stimulates the release of substance P -- causing the problem to lock in place. Natural antihistamines taken during the day, such as Quercetin, are quite helpful.* It is important to discharge substance P during the day so that so much of it isn't there at night. Nerves will not sleep properly when excess substance P is irritating them, setting progressive fatigue into motion. The best combination of nutrients I have found to help discharge substance P is Quercetin, Acetyl-L-Carnitine, and Calcium AEP. Up to two of each can be taken three or four times during the day, generally at meals. This can work quite rapidly to help nerves settle down and mood stabilize.*
Keeping a Positive MoodOnce you make it through the first two weeks then you simply need to keep track of the demands on you versus your ability to recover. Nutrition plays a role in its ability to help you have more energy, greater stress tolerance, and natural thyroid support. All of these issues are fully covered on the Prenatal Nutrition topics page, and the tips given there. Being a mother is not always easy -- and is quite demanding. Wear and tear is expected -- mood may suffer. Some of this is quite normal and expected, considering all that you have been through and all you must now do. However, you don't want a lack of energy to lead to a magnified problem. In general, the most basic approach is to ensure you have adequate dietary protein and B vitamins, as described above. If needed use Stress Helper for additional basic mood support and/or Thyroid Helper for basic metabolic support. You are striving to find a combination of nutrients that helps boost your energy, mood, and sense of feeling in control.
Depending on how well you manage day to day demands and keep your energy up will tell you exactly how well you are doing. Because birth is an intense substance P event, your system can be on the edge of a substance P flare up for months. This doesn't mean you will have a problem, but it does mean to pay attention. Normally, basic energy support and stress support nutrition will keep you on top of things. If you start to feel anxious, afraid, have trouble sleeping, or feel wound up inside then take extra steps to knock down substance P as explained above. Sometimes this type of extra support is needed when it comes time for you to quit nursing or if life becomes bumpy for some reason. Use extra nutritional support, as needed, until you are finished nursing, your menstrual cycle is again running, and you feel you have fully recovered from any wear and tear associated with pregnancy. Your Child's Digestion and ImmunityAfter birth your child's digestive tract begins working for the first time. In the adult digestive tract there are hundreds of millions of foreign bacteria and yeasts that hopefully form an ecological "rain forest"of friendly non-self organisms working to help digestion and support immunity. The proper evolution of digestion in the first few years of life has a profound affect on the future health and well being of your child. The use of antibiotics, while sometimes necessary, is extremely hard on this process. Every attempt should be made to help your child escape the pitfalls of repeated antibiotic use. The proper training of your child's immune system requires a healthy digestive terrain for optimal function. Nursing is proven to support the growth of highly desirable bifidobacteria, which help evolve other friendly bacteria over time as digestion advances. Nursing also helps pass biologically active immune compounds to your child to help assist with immune protection while your child's immune system is developing. Not nursing is harmful to digestion and immunity as unfriendly bacteria are much more likely to gain a toehold, interfering with digestion and messing up proper immune system training. Such problems are likely to send a child down the path of repeat infections, including ear infections. Cheap iron salts (ferrous gluconate and ferrous sulfate), commonly found in infant formulas and used as food fortification, are major factors that stimulate the growth of unfriendly flora.* Various nutrients can be safely used in infants and children of any age to help bolster their digestive health and natural immune function. The top three products I have used for many years in this regard are GI Soother, Immune Plus, and Pyc 50. They can be used to help calm a colicky baby and can be used to help improve any poor digestive symptoms like foul smelling stools or other digestive issue. All three of these are very gentle and non-toxic in any amount -- yet effective at really helping out digestion and immunity. They can be used on a regular basis as part of a healthy diet or they can be used as needed to help overcome any challenges.*
Optimizing IntelligencePregnancy and lactation offer a tremendous window of opportunity to support optimal brain development for your child. Many nutrients are involved with higher-level brain function. These include sulfur-rich protein, B vitamins, iodine, and DHA. All of these have been discussed extensively in this section and/or in the section on Prenatal Nutrition. When you consume these nutrients during lactation, significant levels of them will be in your milk and available to your child. This is the very best way to get intelligence-forming nutrients to your baby. It is equally important to watch for brain stressors. Constant arguments around children, especially infants, is extremely destabilizing to developing nerve circuitry and undermines nerve health and future stress tolerance. Instability between mother and father is also highly immune suppressive to your baby -- often preceding an infection. Ensuring that digestion and immunity evolve correctly, as mentioned in the previous section, is also vital for healthy brain development. An overgrowth of hostile bacteria or yeast produces waste products that re-enter the general circulation, easily cross the blood brain barrier, and disturb nerve development. One's baby is also more at risk for acute infections, which are also nerve toxic -- as are the antibiotics used to treat them. Too much toxic trash simply gets in the way of healthy nerve development. Along with DHA one of the very best nutrients for mental performance is phosphatidyl serine. It excels in support of memory, coordination, and nerve tolerance. It is one more stress management tool that can significantly optimize nerve health. It helps link DHA into cell membranes in the most electrical active manner.
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