Are you experiencing post-pregnancy stress

The stress of motherhood, sleepless nights and extra nutritional needs often make the first few months hard work. It is not uncommon for mothers to experience depression after the birth. Other than the psychological component, many researchers have shown that post-natal depression is brought on by hormonal and chemical changes that can be stopped with good nutrition. Zinc levels tend to fall during pregnancy, because the fetus requires more. Levels of zinc in breast milk drop rapidly as the baby uses up the mother’s reserves.

Depression is a classic symptom of zinc deficiency which can be corrected by supplementing with up to 25mg a day as well as vitamin B6. Omega-3 and -6 oils also assist in preventing depression. It is vital for the mother to maintain levels of optimum nutrition and supplements post-birth, especially if breastfeeding. Breast-feeding is definitely best, both for the child and for the mother. It burns up to 500 calories a day, making getting back into shape easier; stimulates the uterus to contract to pre-birth size; reduces the mother’s risk of developing breast cancer later in life and saves a packet in formula and bottles!

The good nutrition and supplements the mother consumes also get delivered straight to the baby. The balance of nutrients in breast milk in a properly nourished woman is far superior to that in formula milks (most formulas can be likened to adult’s version of junk food). One key factor is the high levels of essential fatty acids necessary for intellectual development. In addition, cow’s milk is very difficult for infants up to 6 months old to digest. It often causes allergies as their immune system battles to deal with the complex protein. Child-onset diabetes is now being linked to the early consumption of cow’s milk and beef.

The immune system becomes allergic to a protein in the milk and meat. This cross-reacts with a virtually identical protein in the pancreas, resulting in the destruction of pancreatic tissue. This finding has led to pediatricians cautioning mothers not only against feeding their children dairy products and beef before the age of 6 months, but against consuming these products themselves.

Healthy babies need the same food as healthy adults do – fresh, unprocessed, additive-free, sugar-free, fiber-rich and low in saturated fat. The best thing you can do for the future of your child is to get it used to eating healthy, nutritious food from the start. Obviously, start your child off on solids that are easily digested and unlikely to cause an allergic reaction. Cooked, pureed vegetables and fruit are a good start, as are raw soft fruit or vegetables that suits the blood type of your baby. Sticking to foods from their blood type group will also go a long way to reducing chances of allergy.

Healthy children

What you feed your child to a large extent determines their health and dietary habits for life. I cannot emphasize this enough! One of the greatest contributions you can make to your child’s development and ultimate longevity is an underlying basis of good nutrition, combined with a healthy attitude towards food and healthy eating habits. A word of caution – it will not be easy! Adults AND children are constantly bombarded with advertisements for junk food and drinks1, so you will have to be strong and determined to help your child develop good habits. The easiest way is simply not to start feeding your children junk food in any form and not to use sugar-laden foods as treats. If you have already started, their habits CAN be changed. Although not easy, 2-3 weeks of concerted effort can transform both the habits and behavior of your children.

Allergies

Children are very sensitive and react quickly to substances. By paying attention you can easily determine what does not suit your child. Children commonly react to foods that don’t suit their blood type; food additives; sugar; dairy products; peanuts; wheat; detergents; house-dust mites and exhaust fumes. Some react to eggs, oranges and gluten grains like oats (wait until your baby is at least 10 months old before introducing these foods. This also applies to any foods for which the parents have a known allergy).

Here are the classic symptoms of food allergy:

• Face: dark or puffy rings around the eyes, constant sniffles, frequent colds, mucus, frequent earache, tonsillitis, facial puffiness.
• Skin: itches, rashes, eczema, puffiness
• Digestive: colic, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach ache, wind
• Mental: hyperactivity, poor concentration, over-emotional, sleeplessness, bed-wetting
• Respiratory: coughing, frequent sore throat, swollen tongue or throat, asthma, respiratory infections

If allergy is suspected, try removing suspected foods or substances for 10 days to see if the child improves. If severe, enlist the help of a qualified health professional to determine and eliminate the cause.

Modern childhood

Childhood should be a happy, fun-filled, carefree time but trends are showing alarming increases in learning disorders, autism, depression and suicide, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). All of these afflictions have shown dramatic increases in only the last 20 years, which indicates that something new is triggering this endemic. Possible culprits include diet, vaccinations and digestive disorders like Crohn’s disease and celiac disease, both far more common in children than they used to be. Often children with a variety of problems are put into a catch-all category and prescribed a drug like Ritalin (a habit-forming amphetamine with many properties similar to cocaine!). This can cause even worse problems and the sad thing is that many disorders can be treated with diet and supplementation.

The average 21st century junk-food diet is specifically lacking in the most important nutrients for brain development and digestion – essential fatty acids, vitamins and zinc.

Symptoms of nutrient-deficiency include:

• inability to concentrate
• mood swings or inappropriate emotional reactions
• fatigue
• depression
• digestive problems
• writing, reading difficulties
• poor hand-eye coordination, coordination in general
• visual perception problems
• excessive thirst
• dry skin, eczema, asthma

Boys have a much higher essential fatty acid requirement than girls and it is interesting to note that 4 out of 5 ADHD sufferers are boys. Dietary lack may not be the only cause – many allergy-producing foods like wheat and dairy actually hinder the conversion of EFA’s in the body. EFA Conversion is also hindered by lack of the vitamins and minerals that power these conversions – vitamin B3, B6 and C, biotin, zinc and magnesium.

Lack of natural animal-derived vitamin A has been linked to digestive disorders, autism and poor vision. If we consider that the best sources of vitamin A are breast milk, organ meats, fish and cod liver oil, it is obvious why our children are suffering from deficiency – the modern formula-milk and junk-food diet is completely lacking in these and the altered forms of vitamin A added to foods doesn’t work as well as the natural sources. We can see from the above that optimal nutrition and supplementation can make an enormous difference to our children’s lives and performance both in the classroom and on the sports field.