Avoiding dairy while breastfeeding = An easy baby...?

Hey everyone. I just want to share my experience here for a minute. I stopped eating dairy and meat when my second baby was 3 months old. And I didn't just stop eating dairy and meat. I added tons of fruits and vegetables (mostly raw) to my diet, as well as raw nuts & seeds (mostly almonds, sunflower, pumpkin, and sesame), incorporated a lot more beans/legumes, and continued to eat whole grains, with a limited amount of processed/packaged food. Yes, I was in the kitchen a lot (and still am- we have half our toys in the kitchen to entertain my 2 kids).

My second baby was pretty easy going from the start, pretty much the complete opposite from my first. My first had lots of fussiness/colic, reflux, crying while nursing & stomach upset, difficulty sleeping, etc. With my second, we have dealt with none of that, and virtually no negative reactions to my diet through my breast milk. I really think it has to do with the fact that I stopped eating dairy.

I just came across this- 101 reasons not to feed dairy to your kids:

http://www.vegfamily.com/babies-and-toddlers/101-reasons.htm

The reasons are not all documented and are probably based on this person's opinion. However, the crazy thing is, my first baby dealt with a lot of the negative things on the list, whereas my second baby did not.

(And that's not even getting into the positive change I have felt in my own health since eliminating dairy!)

Here is a great article from a more reputable source, Harvard School of Public Health. They say "Calcium is important. But milk isn't the only, or even best, source. Check it out below:

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/calcium-and-milk/

Needless to say, I will not be giving cow's milk to my now almost 14 month old toddler. I will be continuing to breastfeed (4-5 times a day, currently), in addition to giving him the fresh vegetable/fruit juice & green smoothie we make daily (with raw nuts/seeds), the whole grains (such as quinoa, brown rice, amaranth, oatmeal, whole grain pasta, sprouted whole wheat bread), the beans/legumes (especially lentils, peas, and other beans mashed up in guacamole), the healthy baked goods & pancakes, the raw almond butter mixed in with applesauce that he loves, and other fruit & veggies.

Love this about how to feed kids in a vegan way:

http://www.raisingvegkids.com/veg-kids.html 

We are not perfect by any means. Sometimes we resort to Joe's O's (Cheerios cereal from Trader Joe's) and there are days where I am running out of ideas so he doesn't get as good a variety as I would like. But I do make a huge effort every day to prepare healthy food for my family, in my own kitchen.

In today's world, we cannot rely on packaged food companies, the government, or even the medical world to correctly guide us to a healthy life. Just look at how cancer rates are rising. We must take the responsibility upon ourselves to search for the best way to feed our families, through the many resources online, documentaries (Food Matters on Netflix is an absolute must watch!) and listening to our hearts and spiritual promptings that come to us as we seek light and truth from above.

Can pregnant & breastfeeding women "go raw"?

Well, not completely. But including more raw fruits and vegetables is great for anyone, including pregnant and breastfeeding women!

I really like what Dr. Joel Fuhrman, author of "Eat to Live," recommends for pregnant and breastfeeding women: 

"I recommend a predominantly plant centered diet, with essential fats from raw nuts, seeds and avocados. A dietary plan for a healthy pregnancy is much like a dietary plan for excellent health. It should include a minimum of five fresh fruits a day, lots of raw and cooked green vegetables, vegetable/bean soup, about 2 to 3 ounces of raw nuts and seeds daily or avocado for a clean source of raw fats. It should include tomatoes, red peppers and berries for their beneficial phytochemicals and at least one yellow/orange starchy vegetable such as corn, sweet potato or squash. Those desiring animal products should limit themselves to eggs and some white meat fowl, but not fish. Dairy fat is also a common source of DDT and other toxic pesticides and toxic substances. So, cheese and butter, which are high in saturated fat, should be avoided. The fatty portion of dairy foods is, after fish, the largest dietary source of the fat-soluble chemical in pesticides.

"All pregnant women should take a supplement of DHA....

"The typical modern diet is low in DHA in both omnivores and vegetarians alike. Most people eat a diet rich in omega-6 fats, but deficient in omega-3. Vegetarians and those who limit their intake of fish, wild meat and eggs have especially been noted to have low levels of DHA. Many vegetarians who consume sufficient flax, hemp, walnuts and greens as a source of short chain omega-3 fat may manufacture sufficient DHA fat on their own, but even with an ideal diet, lots of those on vegan diets are still found to be too low in this extremely beneficial compound."

Taken from: http://www.drfuhrman.com/disease/pregnancy.aspx