Calm Your Baby Naturally Through Food Choices

As a huge natural living fan, I tend to take a more holistic approach when it comes to parenting, and naturally this includes colic and baby soothing solutions.

Through my learning process, I’ve learned that I made some mistakes. I made them because I didn’t know. That’s what happens when we are parents:

We do the best we can based on what we know.

I encourage you to try not to fault yourselves or feel guilty if you’ve made mistakes too. I call my son the experiment baby.

I am very committed to building on my knowledge of health and safety in my home, foods and products every day. I drive my husband nuts as a matter of fact.

But this is the fact: Babies are born with upwards of 200 chemicals in their cord blood. This is mainly due to what we are exposed to before and during our pregnancies.

One thing I really regret giving up on was breastfeeding. I did it for six weeks and wasn’t given the necessary support to keep trying. Instead it was suggested that he go on Nutramagen. Now that I am out of the rabbit hole so to speak, I can see things for what they are. The best way to nurse a fussy baby is by not giving up.

That being said I do recognize…trust me, I do…that it is very hard not to give up when your baby is screaming way more than smiling.

So I am writing this to you as your personal cheerleader and to let you know that there is more to consider when feeding a fussy baby.

If you are breastfeeding, it is best to live like you are pregnant. Taking care of your body will most often result in proper nourishment for your babe.

As parents of high need children our doctors oftentimes come to the conclusion that our babies are sensitive to our milk. Many times this is true but not for the reasons we may think. It is usually because of what we are consuming rather than because our bodies aren’t able to make milk properly.

They may tell us to remove dairy from our diets, etc, but a lot of us, myself included, end up switching to a hypoallergenic formula with easily digestible proteins.

As nursing mothers, If we notice our babies are struggling, maybe it is dairy. Or maybe there is something else we could be eliminating from our diet. There are still a lot of food sensitivities to consider.

But what about the genetically modified organisms, pesticides and other impurities most of us eat on a daily basis? The best thing we can do for baby while pregnant AND breastfeeding is to eat whole foods that are as organic or locally grown. It makes sense but few of us are being educated on the dangers found in your local grocery store. I think that needs to change. So do many others.

If you take a peek at the Environmental Working Group’s Dirty Dozen list provided here, you can get an idea of what produce should absolutely be organic like apples, strawberries, spinach, celery, blueberries and grapes.

If possible, some things breastfeeding mommies should consider avoiding are:

• Canned foods
• Mercury-rich fish like salmon
• Non-organic commercial dairy and meat
• Produce on the Dirty Dozen List
• Extremely processed foods
• Aspartame
• Splenda

You can also think of these suggestions as a good model for what to feed your infant once you begin feeding solids.

Getting in a variety of nutrients is very easy on a whole foods diet when you consider how many whole foods are ready to eat as is:

• Nuts
• Seeds
• Produce
• Green smoothies (a sure-fire way to get your vitamins and antioxidants in making both of your immune systems unstoppable. I personally love them despite their sinister green appearance.)

While making these changes will likely not ‘cure’ your fussy baby, at the very least, your bodies will both be less burdened by pesticides and food additives. Because we feel such a lack of control in regards to our babies’ reactions and mood, it is important to focus on things we can do.

I look forward to helping you further on this journey by sharing my experiences with my little screamaholic as well as things you might try to calm yours.

Keeping baby safe from physical stressors like chemicals is a step toward a calmer and happier baby….naturally.

“Action is the best antidote to despair.” ~ Joan Baez

For more information on what I’ve shared with you in this article please see these resources.

http://www.westonaprice.org/childrens-health/recipes-for-homemade-baby-formula

http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/summary/

http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/factsheets/kidpesticide.htm

http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=2126&page=323

http://www.socialworktoday.com/archive/marapr2007p37.shtml

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1519860/pdf/envhper00375-0020.pdf

http://www.healthychild.org

http://www.afhh.org/chil_ar/chil_ar_why_children.htm

http://www.neha.org/position_papers/PositionChildren.html

Amanda is the owner of Ready or Not – A Baby Planning Service. She is in love with her toddler and her husband and derives much of her writing inspiration from her family experiences. Being a mother of a formerly fussy baby, Amanda is very excited to share her story and contribute the Fussy Baby Site’s blog. To learn more about Amanda and what she does to help pregnant and new parents, please check out her website at www.readyornotbabyplanning.com.

Photo Credit: Gammeana