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Breastfeeding has a funny way of magnifying our sugar cravings, doesn’t it?
I have heard many new moms say that they crave something sweet often or even every couple of hours.
Craving sugar while breastfeeding seems to be a very common side effect – so much so that I wrote this post to share some of the reasons why you might be craving more sweets and sugar while breastfeeding your sweet baby.
Have you ever tried Googling why you’re craving sugar?
I have found that it returns very general reasons why – the biggest reason according to most is because you’re tired and therefore going to crave more sugar than normal.
Yes, being tired definitely will have you craving more sugar but it’s also so much more than that.
Let’s take a deep dive into the top reasons why you’re craving sugar while breastfeeding.
Not Eating Enough Protein and Nutrients
Before I became a mom, I worked at a naturopath medicine doctor’s office.
I found they were always talking about protein, basically saying that we all focus on other foods too much when our bodies need more protein than the average person realizes.
So, part of the puzzle to curing sugar cravings while breastfeeding is to make sure you’re getting a good amount of healthy protein and nutrients.
Not only will doing this help you curb sugar cravings, but it’ll also help with your postpartum healing.
Since I don’t love meat, I rely on protein shakes as my way of making sure I get enough protein.
My protein smoothies are always packed full of nutrient-dense foods that will help my milk supply and with feeling good during my postpartum recovery.
If you want to try healthy protein shakes and smoothies (which I highly recommend you do!), you’ll need a healthy and safe protein powder that is good for breastfeeding moms.
RELATED READ: The Top Lactation Smoothies and Shakes for Milk Supply
My go-to, most trusted protein powder is called Milk Dust.
It contains milk-boosting herb blends like turmeric, cinnamon bark root, and minerals like chromium – all of these are used to balance blood sugars and help reduce the sugar cravings you’re experiencing.
I highly recommend you check it out if you are craving sugary foods.
Another reason I love Milk Dust is that it’s only sweetened with stevia, monk fruit, and organic sugar cane juice which means there is very little sugar.
The added bonus is that adding protein smoothies to your healthy breastfeeding diet plan will help you boost your milk supply naturally while safely starting to lose the extra baby weight.
RELATED READ: How I Safely Lost The Extra Baby Weight Without Losing My Milk Supply
So, the first step to curing your sugar cravings while you breastfeed is to add good-quality protein and healthy nutrients.
You May Be Low on Magnesium
Being low on magnesium is actually common while breastfeeding and the reason is that you need more of it.
This is fairly common when breastfeeding because you need more magnesium than if you weren’t.
It’s recommended that pregnant and breastfeeding women get 20% more magnesium per day than the average person. Since the body can’t create magnesium, it has to come from outside, so breastfed babies have to get it all from breastmilk.
Eileen Behan, R.D., in her book on nutrition and breastfeeding, says that breastfeeding mothers consuming fewer than 2200 calories a day are probably not getting enough magnesium, no matter what they’re eating. (source).
As you can see it is much more difficult to get enough magnesium from the foods we consume.
If we are lacking magnesium it can cause us to crave sugar more than usual.
You can increase your magnesium consumption by adding more magnesium-rich foods like Milk Dust, spinach, seaweed, nuts, and even some mineral waters.
Honestly, there is only so much spinach and nuts you can eat every day, so adding a supplement might be a good choice.
The Underground Health Reporter states,
Chocolate cravings, in particular, are curbed by magnesium supplementation. Magnesium is also contained in commercially available ionic/water soluble mineral formulations.
The best place to start if you want to take a supplement for magnesium is your prenatal vitamins.
I love this postnatal vitamin because it’s full of all the important vitamins, minerals, and nutrients that support me on my breastfeeding journey. Be sure to check it out!
Your Busy Schedule Isn’t Helping
Your new busier schedule really isn’t helping with those sugar cravings.
Caring for a new baby can be stressful and it doesn’t get any better if you also have older children.
Plus I know you’re not getting as much sleep which is so important when trying to curb sugar cravings.
A busy schedule and lack of sleep can deplete your vitamin C and B levels.
A lack of vitamins can also cause sugar cravings.
Foods with Vitamin C are often fruits (which are sweet!) and foods with vitamin B are fish, liver, red meat, and dairy if you can digest it.
Milk Dust has all of these vitamins covered and is a great choice if you feel time-strapped (because you’re busy) and want something that guarantees you’ll get the vitamins you so need to curb sugar cravings.
RELATED READ: The Best Breastfeeding Tips That Will Help You Increase Your Milk Supply
You Need To Add More Fiber To Your Diet
Have you ever at a large plate of food and not felt full?
That is likely because you haven’t consumed enough fiber.
Once you don’t have enough fiber, you feel unsatisfied and that’s why those sugar cravings can come creeping in.
Try eating high-fiber foods at meals.
Eat some fruit before your meal, and add beans or vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower that have a lot of fiber to complete your meal.
Don’t forget to drink lots of water too, hydration is important for breastfeeding and for your gut health along with all the fiber and protein.
When you feel full, you are less likely to crave sugar, because you are stuffed.
In Conclusion…
Before you reach for that ice cream, try blending up a protein shake with fresh fruit to satisfy the sweet tooth by filling you up and also helping your breastmilk production.
The goal is to combine protein and fiber together.
They are both very filling and can help alleviate sugar cravings because you are too full to eat more!
