What Not To Eat (And Drink) After Delivery / Giving Birth?

What not to eat after delivery / giving birth is our next question from our mailbox to answer. And this really is a crucial one to look out for. Why? Because the outcome of what you eat post delivery doesn’t only affect you but your baby as well when you feed him/ her (breastfeeding) – if proper nutrition is supplied to your baby’s body, he/ she will be able to grow and develop at the healthy pace. In the same way, if your baby is supplied with factors that don’t aid the process of developing healthily, your baby will experience having malnutrition – a condition where nutrients aren’t sufficient for one’s body, causing health related problems.

With that being said, you have the idea of why it’s important for new moms to be very careful when choosing their diet. They must have an idea of what to eat and what not to eat after delivery / giving birth, to be sure that they are not only supporting their body post-delivery, but also providing important nutrients to her baby when feeding him/ her.

To start with discussing eatables that are not advised to be eaten, we’ve not only prepared you a list of them but also stated why is that or what is the reason for such eatables because of which you should be avoiding them.

What not to eat after delivery / giving birth:

Let’s get started with what not to eat after delivery / giving birth.

1 – Fried Foods:

Top of the list come fried foods. Fried foods not only contain lots of oil but are also rich in calories, that cause bloating in one’s body – especially post delivery. Not only will you feel bloated but the extra fat gained due to eating fried food will become harder for you to shed in future.

You do not need to gain weight after delivery, in fact, you should be looking for ways to get back to your initial body shape post delivery.

2 – Canned Foods:

Another type of foods that are prohibited post delivery or after giving birth are canned foods. This is because canned products, especially canned meat and canned fish, are found to have lots of preservatives in them, along with an excess of sodium intake. Not only is it unhealthy for you but for your baby.

Excess of sodium in one’s body increases chances of blood pressure spikes and effects your homeostasis. Canned foods, therefore, make it to the list of eatables that answer what not to eat after delivery / giving birth.

3 – Spicy Foods:

Spicy foods, to be honest, are completely fine to consume because it has many health benefits, but not when you’ve just given birth. That’s not because of you but because of the state of your baby’s digestive system. Your baby’s digestive system is weak and finds it hard to digest spicy foods – this is because of capsaicin found in spicy eatables. For this reason, we do not say that you should stop eating spicy foods as they are good for health, but we would recommend limiting the intake of them.

4 – Oily Foods:

Oily foods aid the process of depositing fat in your body. It means you are gaining weight and not losing it to be back in your previous shape. For that very reason, willing to go back to your original shape, it is advised to avoid oily foods.

Some of worst oily foods are butter and sweets.

5 – Fatty Meat:

Fatty meat is restricted for the reason of shedding gained weight during pregnancy. If you consume fatty meats even after delivery, you will find out that your body isn’t able to get back to its previous state/ shape pre-pregnancy. So if you want to be in shape, avoiding fatty meat post delivery is what you should be looking at.

Fatty meat is also something you should avoid when you have typhoid.

6 – Dairy Products:

Even though there are countless of debates still taking place to prove whether dairy products are healthy for one’s body post delivery or not, it’s better to stay safe and limit the intake of such eatables. One reason why most people don’t like dairy products after giving a birth is that these products affect your breast’s milk and can cause lactose intolerance in your baby since his/ her digestive system isn’t mature yet – it’s weak and finds it hard to digest such eatables. For this very reason, dairy products also answer what not to eat after delivery / giving birth.

However, if you really want to consume dairy products, you may stick with yogurt as it contains enough of good probiotics.

7 – Swordfish, Shark, King Mackerel and Tilefish:

Another list of eatables that answer what not to eat after delivery / giving birth is the list of these fishes (Swordfish, Shark, King Mackerel and Tilefish). This is because these types of fishes have high levels of toxin named mercury which is dangerous for baby’s brain development.

You may choose tuna instead but make sure it’s light and you are eating it within limits. Up to 6 ounces of canned tuna is okay. Canned products, however, contain lots of sodium intake – this is why limiting your intake to lowest is fine if you really want to eat any canned product – in this case, tuna.

8 – CAN Products:

CAN products usually mean those products, either drinkables or eatables, that contain any of these three: caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine. This is because of the fact that any of these three (caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine) causes dehydration, diarrhea, and colic in the baby’s body.

There are many more foods that cause colic though. Some of them are onions, dairy products, cruciferous vegetables (cabbage, brussels sprouts, broccoli, and asparagus), legumes including soya beans, lima seeds, and navy.

Caffeine, if deposited into the baby’s body, causes him/ her to experience a disturbed pattern of sleeping – which is directly related to his/ her irritation levels or state.

Alcohol, if deposited into baby’s body, causes drowsiness, weakness, and unusual weight gain in the baby. Also, it decreases the supply of your breast milk as well.

Nicotine, if deposited into baby’s body, affects his/ her brain within a minute, causing addiction and other adverse effects – and since his/ her brain is still in development process, it is very dangerous to provide your baby with nicotine.

9 – Citrus Foods:

Another group of foods that answer what not to eat after delivery / giving birth is the group of citrus foods. However, consumption of citrus foods is response-oriented – it means that if your baby has some sort of diaper rashes or if he/ she has been spitting up, this is probably because of the intake of citrus foods. The reason behind this is that citrus foods target baby’s GI (gastrointestinal) tract which is still in the phase of development.

If you are consuming citrus foods already and your baby doesn’t react with any of these cases, you are fine to continue to do so.

10 – Allergic Foods:

Allergic foods are also restricted to be consumed after giving a birth. This is because they can develop serious allergies in your baby’s system which is not a good thing. It is hard to find out which food is allergic but if you find your baby starting to be allergic to something, get back to the last thing you ate immediately and stop consuming it anymore.

Peanuts are found to have been most allergic in nature for babies.

After getting done with what not to eat after delivery / giving birth, let’s share with you the list of fluids you should be avoiding post delivery.

What not to drink after delivery / giving birth:

1 – Coffee:

Coffee makes it to the top of the list of fluids that you should stop consuming. This is because of caffeine found in it which may cause you and your baby to fall for sleep harder/ unlikely.

2 – Milk:

Milk should not be consumed since it affects your breast milk directly and interferes with it. The goal here is to provide your baby with your own milk, not from brands/ products.

3 – Tea:

Some teas also qualify to have caffeine in them, thus not a good idea to consume them. Again for the same reason of not putting your and your baby’s sleep in danger.

4 – Alcohols:

Alcohols, as discussed earlier, are harmful to babies, causing weakness and unusual weight gain in the baby’s body. Anything alcoholic, therefore, is marked harmful to consume.

When to see a doctor?

It is advised to check your dietitian first before applying any of these eatables in your diet – this is because some of them may be allergic to your body. Also, if you are wondering to take any medication, it is suggested to consult with your doctor first.