[Miss Lily]

am curious if any other members had a low or no carbohydrate diet whilst breastfeeding with no negative effect or drop in their supply?
I was on a low carb diet before conceiving and had great results, since having bubs Ive been on around 1800 calories a day but the weight wont shift at all. I know for my body to lose weight I need to cut back on carbs but dont want to jeporise feeing my baby which is far more important.

Really appreciate your feedback.

[~kacee~]

I've been on a high protein, low carb (maybe 1 piece of bread a day, no potato, rice or pasta) since January 1st (DS was 6.5 months) and I haven't noticed any supply changes. However, I'm drinking heaps of water, and have started taking Herbs of Gold breastfeeding tablets, plus Blackmores P&BF gold tablets. Maybe they help??

How old is your LO?

[axiomae]

Within a few days my supply drops right off. I'm still holding onto 5kgs of baby weight and can't wait to get rid of it! Low carb always works for me too, but I'm going to have to wait until I wean DD. I have a dodgy supply as it is so any drop is quite significant.

[Miss Lily]

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I've been on a high protein, low carb (maybe 1 piece of bread a day, no potato, rice or pasta) since January 1st (DS was 6.5 months) and I haven't noticed any supply changes. However, I'm drinking heaps of water, and have started taking Herbs of Gold breastfeeding tablets, plus Blackmores P&BF gold tablets. Maybe they help??

How old is your LO?

Just 13 weeks, but I feel so so yucky at this weight (20 ish kg to lose) and I want to do something serious to shift it now. I know my body doesnt drop kgs on low cal/exercise alone from previous weight loss pre pregnancy, but low carb is the only way Ive been able to lose before... Glad to hear your experience has been positive, have you lost any weight so far?

[Megs25]

I've heard you shouldn't, because it forces your body into ketosis and ketones leach into your breastmilk, which isn't good for bubs.

Stick to a balanced diet while breastfeeding.

[lucky 2]

http://kellymom.com/nutrition/mothers-diet/mom-lowcarb/
This might help, there are lots of other articles to read at this website.

[Ella'n'alex]

I eat a sort-of-low-carb-diet, because I suffer from low blood glucose, but I eat small amounts of unrefined carbohydrates - brown rice, bread with lots of grains and seeds etc. Could you maybe just do that until you're finished BF? Go for small amounts of low GI stuff?

13 weeks I wouldn't be too worried though. If you're hungry then you need to eat - eat good stuff, and listen to your body. Someone told me, and I'm now convinced, that you need to give yourself two years to recover from a birth.

[SarahM72]

I'm eating low carb high fat, and have been for quite awhile now (maybe coming up to 1 and half years, I'm not quite sure, could be longer).

Anyway, this whole time I've been breastfeeding two children with no problems. But neither of them were little babies when I started, they were older - I think the youngest was probably around one and half years old when I started.

I eat lots of non-starchy vegies and salad, meat, nuts, berries, that type of thing. I'm eating much more nutrient dense and healthy food than I was before (when I ate lots of rice and junk food), so I figure it can only be a good thing. I also eat heaps more than 1800 calories (that seems rather low, especially when breastfeeding) But as I say my kids were both older than yours. Anyway I've lost over 30kgs now while breastfeeding.

Anyway, 13 weeks after having a baby seems a little soon to be worrying about weight loss to me. I was just lazing around at that stage, taking advantage of breastfeeding to stuff my face, lol.

[Chelara]

Don't do no carbs but I'd say you're fairly safe to cut carbs completely from one meal and stop any sugary drinks and snacks and see how you go. I'm breast feeding an 8 month old and have lowered my carb intake.

[Anemonefish]

I don't think you should do the 'no carb' thing while breastfeeding as it messes with your body's chemistry. I'm vegetarian, so can't totally cut carbs, but I do go low carb whenever I can - I avoid rice/bread/pasta (particularly in the evening), but I do eat cereal (muesli) for breakfast, skim milk in coffee/tea, and I avoid sweet things. I did stints of low carb while breastfeeding without it affecting supply, but my babies were both 1-2 yrs old and eating regular food as well. I think the main thing is to not try to lose weight too quickly, drink lots of water and add in some exercise. A friend of mine launched into a strict diet and heavy exercise routine when her baby was about 6 months and she lost all the baby weight within a couple of months but lost her milk too. To be honest, I'd rather be overweight for a little longer than jeopardise breastfeeding, it's only a short period in your life that you are breastfeeding after all.