What To Eat During Postpartum

I don’t know about you, but when I’ve been through something traumatic, I reach for comfort food. It’s feels good in the moment and it’s just so easy. Cooking a nice, healthy meal was way under my radar after giving birth. This was the time when I tried out those food delivery services for the first time. I thought, I deserve some hot wings!

But let me tell you what, mama—what I really deserved was to heal. Pregnancy itself, nevertheless the actual birth, takes a huge toll on a woman’s body. Blood sugar and blood pressure go haywire, iron levels drop after birth. The absolute best thing you can do for yourself is to get yourself some healthy food!

If you’re not up to cooking, reach out to your support system. That is, if they’re not already knocking your door down to bring you meals and see your fresh new babe. This is a time where you should forget about humility and take what’s being offered to you. You need it—and deserve it.

Here are some of the top foods you should be eating during your postpartum healing period:

1. Protein

Your body has been supporting the growth of another human for the past 9 months. Your body has been funneling portions of your own sustenance in order to give the baby what they need. Plus, now that your body is producing protein-rich breast milk (whether you’re breastfeeding or not) you definitely need to re-up your supply. Protein shakes are super-easy ways to get that protein in, if you aren’t able to get in a full meal 3 times a day. Otherwise, protein-rich foods like eggs, fish, meats, and peanut butter are great foods to help get your strength up.

2. Iron

According to the National Institutes of Health, pregnant and postpartum women are at risk for developing iron deficiency. The extra blood being sent to your womb, plus the blood that exits the body along with the placenta after birth, can leave you especially drained of this important mineral. Iron is responsible for creating new blood cells in your body—which means healing and growth. And guess who’s trying to heal after postpartum? You! Many of the foods that contain protein also have iron, so keep focusing on those. Other good sources of iron include beans, lentils, and dark leafy greens. Hello, kale chips!

3. Calcium

Don’t forget about your bones. You know, the ones that stretched in order to carry your baby? That’s right, your bones literally stretched. So, if you felt low back pain at any point, that’s what was going on. Particularly in delivery.

A research study published by the National Library of Medicine concludes that “childbirth is arguably one of the most dramatic musculoskeletal events the human body undergoes.” When your baby is born, your pelvic bones receive an intense amount of pressure from your baby’s head, and often this results in pelvic bone injury.

But the magical thing is, that this study discovered that by 7 weeks postpartum, most or all of these skeletal injuries resolved themselves without treatment. How amazing is the female body?

The point is, you need your calcium to help those magical bones of yours heal. Great sources of calcium include green leafy veggies, broccoli, milk, cheese, yogurt, and fish.

Your body is magic—don’t forget it! Even if you want to order in and get that fast food, trust me. This stuff is what your body needs to heal, and you will thank yourself for it!

Use this shopping list to get started.