Dr. Judith Roepke, R.D., Ph.D., has answered many of your
questions about nutrition and dieting. Dr. Roepke is a perinatal
nutritionist, researcher and member of the Breastfeeding.com
medical advisory board. Look for more Q&A forums with Dr.
Roepke in the future.
Will working out and tanning change my breastmilk?
| NAME: |
Elizabeth |
| BABY'S NAME: |
Josef |
| BABY'S AGE: |
2 months |
I am 18 years old and I had my baby boy on January 8,
2000. I want the best for my baby, so I decided to
breastfeed. I was told that I should not do too much
exercising for the first month. I have now joined the gym near my
house. My question is will working out and lifting weights
change my breastmilk in any way? Also, is it okay to go
tanning in a tanning booth? I have tanned in the past and I
would like to start tanning again if it won't do anything to my
breast milk. Thank you for your help.
I am glad that you made the decision to breastfeed your son.
You should feel reassured that moderate exercise and
weightlifting will not adversely affect your breastmilk, and it
may enhance your own sense of well-being. My concern,
however, is that you not go too far with your exercise,
especially since your baby is so young. Many breastfeeding
women find that, even without exercise, they lose about two
pounds per month and are back to their pre-pregnant weight by
about six to eight months postpartum. This is a healthy
pattern of weight loss. Your objective now should be to
breastfeed and be fit, not to breastfeed and lose weight. When
you begin exercising, make sure that you do not compromise your
diet and that you do not lose weight too quickly.
I am not aware of any impact of tanning on the quality of
breastmilk, other than that it might enhance the Vitamin D levels
in your breastmilk slightly. However, I am very concerned about
the long-term damage of the tanning booth to your skin. Young
women of your age have lovely skin, and it is a tragedy when they
are prune-like and wrinkled by my age (65 years)!
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