Motherhood is a beautiful journey but it brings along its own set of challenges, especially for a new mother. As a new mother is coping with a lot of physical and emotional changes while taking care of her newborn, she needs adequate rest and a healthy diet to recover.
“It is natural for a mother of a newborn to feel fatigued and worn out, especially after the first delivery. It can be difficult for a mother to pay attention to her eating habits when she is absorbed with the needs of the baby,” says Dr Partap Chauhan, an Ayurvedacharya and Director of Jiva Ayurveda.
Ayurveda recommends adequate rest for the mother of a newborn. She is also advised to have a nutritious diet comprising of ghee, milk, rice, vegetables etc for full recovery. A postpartum diet is also imperative as a mother’s nutrition is the only source of nutrition for the newborn child. Dr Chauhan also says that consuming herbs like shatavari, turmeric, and basil could aid in quick recovery.
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Here are a few nutrition tips by the Ayurveda expert for a new mother:
Fresh meals: Make sure to prepare fresh meals for the new mother for quick recovery. According to Ayurveda, freshly cooked food has more life force (pranic force) and nutrition content in it, which is essential for the woman’s body for faster recovery after delivery.
Consume soups, rice, ghee, milk: The postpartum diet should have ingredients that can calm the Vata element. The diet should be dominant in vegetable soups, rice, ghee, milk, etc. Generally, fruits are avoided for 21 days after the birth of the newborn. Foods such as fenugreek leaves and seeds can be consumed by the mother to help improve lactation.
Herbs: If a healthy and nutritious diet is not taken, it can create imbalances in the body of the mother, which makes her prone to gaining weight or getting arthritis and other chronic diseases. Herbs like nutmeg, coriander, shatavari, turmeric, and basil are essential in the post-delivery period. A normal diet is usually resumed post 48 days of childbirth.
Warm meals: The food consumed needs to be warm as cold food does not provide the required nutrition and also aggravates the Vata dosha and affects the digestive system. Digestion should be easy and smooth during this period.
