After giving birth for the first time, I was lucky enough to live in a community of caring neighbours who popped over with a string of hot meal over the first few weeks. My body reacted well to the warm meals, but there were some evenings when my stomach just couldn’t hack it. If you’re left wondering about which foods are perfect to eat for an optimal postpartum recovery and which ones are best avoided, you’ve come to the right place.
We, quite rightly, spend so much time on considering which foods to eat and avoid during pregnancy and often glaze over the importance of foods helpful for our postpartum healing.
It’s not uncommon for mums to be immediately left alone in the house after childbirth to figure it out alone. So, in this digital age with information at our fingertips, I’m putting some foods out there that you might like to try during your postpartum journey – some which are traditionally eaten in range of different cultures.
Keep it Hot: Bone Broths, Stews and Soups
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, women lose a lot of Qi (or energy), Yin, Yang energy and blood during childbirth. This leaves women’s bodies in a ‘Yin’/ cold state. In order to bring balance to the body, TCM recommends mothers to eat warm, easy to digest foods such as bone broths, meaty stews and soups to aid postpartum recovery.
In Korea, women traditionally drink lots of seaweed soups during the first few weeks after giving birth. Why? Seaweed is high in calcium and Iodine – nutrients which help the body recover and boost baby’s brain development during breastfeeding.
Postpartum Recovery:
Warm Drinks and Warm Body
In order to keep your body’s energy in balance, TCM recommends that new mums avoid drinking icy drinks or eating straight-from-the-fridge foods, raw fruit or vegetables. Instead try to drink warm or room temperature beverages alongside your meals. This will help to strengthen your digestive system and keep you hydrated.
It’s customary in countries such as Nepal to offer a cup of warm milk to the mother directly after birth to help soothe the body. Other traditions include bone broths and different types of herbal teas.
It’s also considered important to keep your body, warm and rested during the first few weeks after childbirth. Make sure your abdomen is covered with a warm blanket as much as possible if it’s a cold time of year.
Some common traditions practiced throughout South East Asia include ‘mother roasting’ and steaming ceremonies after childbirth. In countries such as Cambodia, it’s customary to place fire-warmed rocks on a woman’s abdomen to encourage the shrinking of the uterus and to help avoid stomach sagging later on. Sitting on a fire-warmed rock is also considered helpful in helping to prevent uterine prolapse.
According to Chinese Medicine, heating the body in the first few days and weeks after childbirth helps to seal the emotional, physical and spiritual gates that have been opened during childbirth and repels cold and wind from the uterus.
Okay, so we don’t all have access to fire-warmed rocks but a local postpartum doula near you might just specialize in exactly that! So check out what your local doulas have to offer.
lean Protein
After childbirth, the uterus is left empty and cold, so TCM encourages new mothers to eat foods which are considered to be not only hot in temperature but ‘hot’ in their nature. Meats such as chicken, and lamb as well as legumes like soaked black beans fall into this ‘hot’ food category.
To balance the loss of energy and blood, eating eggs and (soaked and sprouted) lentils also work well for postpartum recovery. Make sure those lentils are soaked to avoid any tummy upsets – just the thing you won’t need after giving birth! Eggs are also rich in choline, a nutrient which is high in demand if you’re breastfeeding.
Beef and leafy greens
Grass-fed beef and dark green leafy greens help give a boost to your blood and energy, which is just the tonic you need after childbirth. These foods are also packed full of iron which can easily get depleted in a mother when breastfeeding so be sure to take a daily prenatal vitamin which includes iron as well.
warming herbs and spices
Traditionally, in countries throughout Asia, women eat spicy dishes such as pork or chicken cooked in black pepper or ginger and sesame oil. These spices as well as nutmeg, cinnamon, fennel and garlic work well in providing warmth to meals in the Postpartum recovery period and help muster up some heat in the body.
Whole Grains
Whole grains and soaked grains such as oats, rice, millet and quinoa are encouraged for replenishing Yin energy. Instead of eating your breakfast cereal why not opt for a heartwarming bowl of porridge with a dash of cinnamon to get your body feeling warm and soothed.
Get some rest
It’s easier said than done, but try to get as much rest as you can. In a lot of countries it’s customary for the mother and baby to remain in the house for a period of 40 days. Even if your lifestyle doesn’t allow for it, in those moments where you feel like you just need time to yourself with your family and perhaps doula, honour and prioritize those needs.
People will naturally be eager to visit your beautiful, new family member but it’s 100% okay to politely decline and arrange a date for a time when you feel ready.
There’s actually a wonderfully informative book called (#ad) ‘The First Forty Days: The Essential Art of Nourishing the New Mother’ by Heng Ou . It includes 60 simple postpartum recipes such as soups, broths, snacks and lactation teas. All specially catered to the nourishment needs of a new mother. It also covers advice on how to navigate emotions you might feel and empower yourself as a new mum!
