Does food really affect a nursing baby?

I have heard/read conflicting info on food affecting a nursing baby. Some say that certain food may give a baby gas while others point out that formula fed babies also have gas. What is the correct info?

both, depending on the situation.

all babies, like all humans get gas. some are more sensitive to certain foods than others - again, babies as well as adults.

as far as food affecting a nursing baby... well it can, but most likely it will not. there is no "nursing mother's diet"... the broccoli, garlic,cabbage, spicey food warnings are old wives tales... babies do not get what goes into a mother's stomach, there is no tube connecting the two, babies get what nutrients go into the mother's blood stream and pass into her milk... so most often when a baby is reacting to something the mother ate it is a protein that the baby's system is not handling well, usually too immature for (dairy is the most common, followed by soy, nuts, eggs, wheat)
http://kellymom.com/nutrition/mom/index....

there is also something to be said about the containers... mush easier to swallow air from a bottle than from a breast, and even bottle to bottle it varies.

and if a baby is allergic, or its system is too immature for it yet, dairy and soy can sometimes cause some pretty good sized issues - and that's what artificial infant formulas are primarily made from.

My friend is currently nursing and she has to becareful of spicy foods as it upsets the baby's tummy i believe it's true alcohol can transfer to the baby through breast milk why not other properties of the foods

Babies are the same as adults, some food will give them gas and other food will be just fine.

Take note of what you have eaten each day so you will know if some food has had an effect on your baby.

For me it seemed to take less than 12 hours for the food to be passed on in breast milk.

In this matter ask your grandmother or mother (in that order).
There are so many wives tales that often hard to tell.
But reality from science is very few foods can affect the baby that nurses . Of course avoid alcohol.

"Typically, food that will make you gassy will also make your baby gassy" and similar are just old wives' tales.

There is some excellent, research-based information on the topic at kellymom.com.

"There are NO foods that a mother should avoid simply because she is breastfeeding. It is generally recommended that you eat whatever you like, whenever you like, in the amounts that you like and continue to do this unless you notice an obvious reaction in your baby to a particular food. There is no such thing as a "LIST OF FOODS THAT BREASTFEEDING MOTHERS SHOULD NOT EAT" because most nursing moms can eat anything they want, and because the babies who are sensitive to certain foods are each unique - what bothers one may not bother another. If you have a family history of allergies, you might want to avoid certain foods (for example, peanuts or dairy), but again, this would be different for every child.

It is common for nursing moms to be warned away from eating the so-called "gassy foods" such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, beans, etc. However, gassy foods have no more potential to affect your baby than other foods.

Eating certain foods may cause gas in mom due to the normal breakdown of some of the undigested carbohydrates (sugar, starches, soluble fiber) by bacteria in the large intestine (see Gas in the digestive tract).

However, breastmilk is made from what passes into mom's blood, not what is in her stomach or digestive track. Neither the gas nor the undigested carbohydrates (whose breakdown can cause gas in mom) pass into mom's blood, so it is impossible for these things to pass into your milk to make your baby gassy."

http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/mom/mo...

"The idea that certain foods in any mom's diet will cause gas in her baby is incredibly persistent but is not founded in research. If certain foods in moms' diets were an overall problem for most babies, we would expect that cultures that emphasize those foods would have more gassy and fussy babies, but this does not occur at all.

This is not to say that certain foods would not bother a particular baby - this does happen occasionally (and it's more likely with very young babies). However, there is no list of foods that every mom should avoid while breastfeeding. In fact, most babies are fine with any food that mom eats, so there is no reason to avoid a food unless you notice an obvious reaction in your baby every time you eat a particular food."

http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/gas...

the notion that certains foods will give baby gas is a myth

but proteins from foods that piggyback into the proteins from mom's blood can find their way into mom's milk and cause problems for a breast baby

my nurslings never had any issues with foods i ate.....but other mothers do have problems.....and it's not something to worry about until your baby starts to show symptoms or a pattern of intolerance after you eat certain foods like dairy (example)

formula babies frequently have gas, constipation, diarreah and a host of other intestional ailments....sometimes things that don't show until adulthood

Americans are very very ill as a society.....do you think it has anything to with our formula feeding culture????

i do

edit....and other's have thrown out to avoid alcohol......i have a nursling and quite often enjoy a glass of wine or the odd margarita with my husband

and nurse as usual......alcohol is certainly NOT prohibited to the nursing mother

Actually if I eat things w/alot of onions, my 4mo girl gets BAD gas. And yes formula-fed babies get gas too.

dairy in my diet gave my daughter a rash, blood and mucous in poop, and just a lot of pain.

taking dairy out we still had it, but less severe.

so yes, I think it does.

formula gave her gas and constipated her (soy) and the "safe" formula...nutramigen with a modified casein helped A LOT.

she is still a gas ball at times. poops great though.

babies get gas, though generally BF babies have a better time due to the ease of digestion of BM.

i know i CANNOT eat pizza or i will be up all night.. but formula babies have gas also..I cannot eat lasagna,greens,pizza,barbecue . my babies are sensitive i guess

don't care if others say it is a wifes tale ..i know what happens.

yes this is verry true.. certin foods can affect the baby by causing gas diarrhea acid reflux.. and most of a babies gas problems are caused by air bubbles .. either breast feed or bottle feed young babies only breath thru there nose so they are breathing and swollowing and gulping the result is gas.....infact some babies can even has allergic reactions to foods transfered thru breastmilk.. but since the food is deluted so to speak the reactions would be rash or skin irritations nothing soo horrible as swollen glands and so on...

Yes, what you eat & drink affects your breastfeeding baby. I got this info straight from my ob/gyn. Stay away from caffiene, cabbage, beans, broccoli, cauliflower, chocolate, carbonated drinks, alcohol, etc. Formula fed babies do suffer from gassiness, often because they aren't burped properly at each feeding or the formula doesn't agree with them.

Every body is diffferent.
Every baby is different.
Personally my babies reacted to coffee and chocolate

spicey foods gave baby upset stomach

What you eat can change the taste and such of your milk. If you eat something spicy then yes, your baby might get gas or an upset stomach.

All babies get gas at some point. Just like all adults get gas. Gas is a nutural part of life.

When my son was a newborn he was really gassy! I could not eat dairy or anything spicy or greasy. we ended up having him on soy formula and i would breastfeed just a little bit everyday so i wouldn't dry up and so he would remember how to breastfeed. Once he was about 3 months old i started back up, he's almost 9 months old now and he is still nursing!

I know regular cows milk is some times an issue..spicy foods are an issue. Another reason why i chose not to breast feed was because I had to watch everything I consumed.

Anything you eat while nursing will affect your baby. Typically, food that will make you gassy will also make your baby gassy, causing the baby to be uncomfortable and fussy. Also, spicy foods will upset your babies stomach. A little of most foods are ok, just try and not go overboard.