Are prenatal vitamins vegan?

Christina: Not all of them, but there are brands that are. I have seen women have good results with Deva vegan prenatal multivitamins. Both Mega and Rainbow Light brands of prenatal vitamins are also of the highest quality and have worked hard to not contribute to the upset stomachs that so many pregnant women deal with. These vitamins have all the nutrients needed and are designed to get to the cells more efficiently.

Would a woman who is vegan during pregnancy need to take more supplements than a non-vegan pregnant woman?

Susan: The needs are the same between vegan and non-vegan pregnant women with the exception of iron. The prenatal vitamin takes care of most of the iron needs during pregnancy. Because vegans do not get their iron from meat, it is advisable to focus on plant sources of iron such as whole grains, beans, spinach, chard, dried fruits, and beets. You can increase the absorbability of dietary iron by pairing iron foods with high Vitamin C foods.

Christina: Dark leafy greens like kale, collards, and bok choy are a great sources of iron in our diets. Broccoli, whole wheat, black turtle beans, escarole, watercress, dandelion greens, and lentils are all great sources of iron as well. Try to limit spinach and Swiss chard, as they contain high levels of oxalic acid, which inhibits absorption of calcium and iron.

Iodine, like that found in Kombu or iodized sea salt is important during pregnancy and breast feeding because iodine deficiency is the cause of the most preventable form of brain damage in newborns. It’s been my experience that most macrobiotic women who do not eat fish are deficient in iodine - but getting enough is as simple as using iodized sea salt or taking a kelp supplement.

Are there solid facts that state that a vegan pregnancy is healthier than a non-vegan pregnancy?

Christina: According to www.happycow.net and www.naturalbirthandbabycare.com, a vegan pregnancy can be just as healthy and nutritionally adequate as any other. Experts like Dr. Neal Barnard will take it a step further and tell you that a properly nourished vegan woman will be healthier during pregnancy and not struggle as much with digestive issues, bloating, swelling of the feet, insomnia and all the other things that plague women during this special time.
 
Susan: In a 1987 study of 1,700 pregnancies at a vegan community in Tennessee, pregnancies were dramatically healthier. And only one in 100 babies had to be delivered by cesarean section, compared with much higher rates in the general population.
 
Alicia: All of the vegan pregnancies I have witnessed have been way smoother than those of my non-vegan friends. My friends Heather, Laura, Lalayna, Desire, and “Macro-Mom” Sarah Forrester Wendt did not have to worry about all the medications and interventions that our society has come to consider normal. From my point of view, the more vegan you are, the more healthy you are – and that makes your pregnancy go more easily and helps your baby to be super duper healthy!

Will eating vegan increase the risk of the baby developing certain allergies later in life?

Susan: A vegan diet offers increased intake of immune boosting foods to help protect against chronic health problems.

Christina: As long as the mother is getting adequate amounts of zinc in her diet or as a supplement, there is no concern. Zinc is essential to health. It doesn't prevent allergies directly, but having a balanced concentration of zinc in the body results in a strong immune function, that often is the key in allergy prevention and treatment. Zinc can be found in foods like whole wheat and nuts.

In part 3, we'll cover child nutrition and breastfeeding. Stay tuned!

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Kind Classics: Vegan Pregnancy Q&A - Part 1
My Friend Fatim's Natural Pregnancy
Fatim's Superhero Baby!
My Friend Fatim's Natural Birth...

Christina Pirello and Susan Levin have answered some of your very important questions about vegan pregnancy. These are the most common questions I received from you Kind Lifers when I first asked January of 2010. There's a lot of great information below, so take a look at it and keep those questions coming! I'll be posting more answers to your questions in parts 2 & 3!

What kind of formula should a vegan baby drink?

Christina: Well, first, I have to say that the best food for babies is breast milk. In the rare instance that a mother cannot nurse, then a formula can be used. There is a lot of controversy around soy and the isoflavones that include phytoestrogen. Somehow, it has been put out there that phytoestrogens are the same as estrogen - but they’re not at all the same. Unlike estrogen, phytoestrogens are plant-based. They just behave in the same manner as estrogen receptor cells, which regulate levels of estrogen in a woman's body. That said, the soy formula I have found to be the most natural - without simple sugars, additives, GMOs, antiobiotics or other questionable ingredients - is Baby’s Only Organic sweetened with brown rice syrup.
 
Susan: Soy-based formulas are the best option for a non-breast feeding baby. Human breast milk is unique and not mimicked by anything else in nature, so grocery-store brands of soy, rice, cow’s milk by themselves are not substitutes for formula.
 
Also, macrobiotic counselor, Warren Kramer recommends checking out this book about organic baby food.

Is soy bad for a pregnancy, and while breastfeeding?

Christina: No. Even if a baby is shown to be sensitive to soy, nothing seems to come through in the mother's milk, so there is no worry. While the baby gets all the nutrients the mother consumers, experts say that if a baby has food sensitivities, that does not mean the mother can not enjoy the foods the baby is sensitive to. The baby gets the nutrients, but usually does not show signs of distress from the sensitivity. And, usually, an infant's sensitivity to soy is not something they are born with; often the mother has one, too. We say that the mom should eat normally and see if there is a negative reaction in her infant, like excessive fussiness, indigestion, crying...it will not usually be severe. In fact, studies have shown that mothers eating traditionally-produced organic soy, like tofu, tempeh, shoyu and miso, are more relaxed and as a result, so are the babies. 
 
Susan: Soy products are safe and may even have health advantages. In fact, research has shown that the earlier people consume soy in life, the greater the health advantages. So sharing your love of soy with your children may be a priceless gift. Soy is not essential, but it does reduce cancer risk later in life. Additionally, protein needs go up during pregnancy and lactation, and soy is a great high-protein source. Emphasize whole soy foods such as miso, tempeh, tofu, soy milk, and of course the whole soy bean (edamame).

Christina: People are freaked out by soy because they have been told to be freaked out. The truth is that traditional soy can help women with so many things, from PMS to hot flashes associated with menopause; to reducing breast cancer risk; to reducing muscle tension in the legs. On the other hand, any soy products with soy isolates or isolanted soy protein should be avoided, because the way they’re processed makes them unhealthy.
 
Are soy formulas safe?  If so, which one should a mother feed her baby?

Christina: Most soy formulas are loaded with sugar and are not made from organic soybeans, so you could be getting GMOs, pesticides, herbicides, antibiotics and other additives. Again, the only one I have found to be free of all that jazz is Baby’s Only Organic.
 
Susan: Yes, soy formulas are safe. According to published research, there does not seem to be any difference in outcome between babies who drank soy and cow’s milk formulas. Dr. Spock himself felt soy formula did have advantages over cow’s milk formula because of cow milk’s link to various diseases such as type 1 diabetes, lactose intolerance, and dairy allergies.
 
In the 8th Edition of Dr. Spock’s Baby and Child Care, it states, “cow’s milk itself … is not safe for infants. The protein and sugar mix is wrong, and infants fed straight cow’s milk are likely to become seriously ill.”

How can a vegan, pregnant woman increase her protein without going overboard on soy?

Susan: Don’t sweat the protein issue. If you consume adequate calories, your protein needs will be met. When you eat more calories during pregnancy, you naturally consume more protein as well. It takes care of itself! Remember, protein is found in whole grains, beans, peas, nuts, seeds, and vegetables. Yes, even broccoli gets 1/3 of its calories from protein!

Christina: There is no need to go crazy with protein because you’re pregnant. There is protein in everything we eat, except fruit. Women should get their protein from beans, soy foods (traditional, again, no isolated soy), seitan and grains like quinoa and amaranth, which contain the same levels of protein and structure as an egg, and a daily serving of nuts. A vegan woman need not go nuts with soy to get what she needs. I usually recommend people eat tofu once a week and enjoy fermented soy more often: twice a week for tempeh, daily for miso. Fermented soy is easy on digestion, so people have fewer difficulties with it.

That covers your soy questions! In parts two and three, we'll look at your questions about breastfeeding, stretch marks, Vitamin B-12 and much more!

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I have not taken my nursing bra off since Bear was born…I’ve been wearing it for seven months! At first, I didn’t even know I needed nursing bras, or for what, but once Bear was born, I had some questions about what to do with the socks I was stuffing down my shirt (more on this in the future), and how to keep warm and such. Anywho, one day I opened my mailbox and my friend and neighbor Heather, whose baby is one year older than mine, had left me her nursing bras from her early nursing days.
 
They are life saves. And as my body changed over the months, and I started leaving the house a little more, I needed some nursing tanks for my slightly more put-together looks. You know, meetings and such. So, I went on a hunt for organic cotton tanks. They don’t exist! Bummer! Would you buy if they made them? I sure would.
 
Anywho, I found Glamourmom, and loved them. I’ve been wearing their tanks for a month now. They’re so great – they look good under my jackets and shirts and they feel good, while still being functional. The real reason they are essential for breastfeeding is that the little bra strap snaps off for easy boob access. They are great! My favorite one is the striped long tank pictured here, as well as the same style in black. I also love the grey nighttime tank.
 
Win a $200 Gift Certificate to Glamourmom!
 
Just in time for the holidays, Glamourmom is giving away a $200 gift certificate to one kind mama!
 
Check out their line of products here, then leave a comment below telling me what your favorites are and why you or a kind mama (or mama to be) you know needs them!
 
Good luck!

*UPDATE: We've chosen our winner. Congrats TK!*

PS – through December 31, Glamourmom will match any product purchase with a nursing bra donation to Feed the Children…so if you have a kind nursing mama or mom-to-be on your shopping list, definitely check out Glamourmom.

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Exercise for Pregnancy

Gentle, daily exercise is super important for a healthy pregnancy and natural birth, so I wanted to share how I stayed active during my pregnancy.  I simply went on daily walks. There were some days or weeks when I didn’t, but for the most part, I was able to walk around three miles every day.

My friend Lalanya and her midwife, the wonderful Margo Kennedy (who was also my midwife), swear that walking was part of what made her pregnancy and birth experience so nice. Lalanya walked three to five miles a day, like she was training for a marathon - the marathon of birth! If you’re pregnant I highly recommend it. Meet your friends or make your husband, boyfriend, or partner take you. The fresh air and trees will do wonders and help the baby get into the right place. It’s so important to help your baby get positioned head down, facing the right way.

Lalanya walked three miles the day before she gave birth. She walked slowly, but she did it! Anywho, I walked a lot during my pregnancy, and it made me feel really good. I think I walked a full hike the day before I gave birth, too. Try it, especially if you are planning a natural birth.

Have any of you Kind Lifers experienced the benefits of walking during pregnancy? What other types of exercise have made you feel great while expecting?

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Photo Credit: Content in a Cottage

Selma Blair had a little boy in July, and she’s following The Kind Diet to get back to her pre-pregnancy body. Here’s what she says:
 
 "I've been following Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Diet. It helps with my clarity and endurance. In a few weeks I think I'll start getting into [the gym] when things slow down a bit -- it'll be Pilates in L.A.!"
 
Yay, Selma! Have any of you kind lifers followed the superhero diet post baby? How did it make you feel?

Photo Credit: Zap2it

When I posted my recent blog about breastfeeding basics, you Kind Lifers responded with some great personal advice and lots of questions. I feel like this is a topic that could be discussed endlessly! So, I compiled some of your questions, and went straight to the experts - PCRM’s Dr. Susan Levin, and a wonderful midwife and mother of two, Kelly. Hopefully, the info below will help you on your breastfeeding adventure as a mama or mommy-to-be!
 
Is vegan breast milk deficient in iron and zinc? Can a vegan mom increase her iron levels by eating more vitamin C with iron or are supplements recommended?
 
Susan: The guidelines for breastfeeding mothers are similar to those for pregnant women. Milk production requires even more calories than pregnancy, so you will need to boost your food intake a little bit. During the first six months of breastfeeding, you need 500 calories more than you did before you became pregnant. This drops to 400 additional calories during the second six months of breastfeeding. Protein needs are the same as during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy (an additional 25 grams per day over pre-pregnancy needs).
 
Alicia: PCRM has a fantastic article about iron and zinc for pregnant women on their website. The same advice applies to breastfeeding women, so check it out here. Also, there is a non-constipating iron supplement called Floradix that you can take if you really don't eat enough iron. But iron is in so many foods - pretty much every bean, seaweed, quinoa, greens, sesame seeds, tofu, pumpkin seeds, raisins, prunes, beets, molasses, and for you nutritional yeast lovers, it's in there too. So if you're concerned about getting enough iron, make the seaweed dishes from my book. You can also make the gomasio and use it on your whole grains or greens.
 
What medications should be avoided when breastfeeding?
 
Alicia: Ideally, you won’t need to be on medication!
 
Kelly: One of my favorite resources for breastfeeding moms is Kellymom.com. It has so much wonderful information on pretty much every issue related to breastfeeding. They have a page dedicated to finding out safety information for specific medications.

What if your baby doesn’t want your breast milk?
 
Kelly: A baby not taking to its mother's breast milk is very rare. If a baby is rejecting the breast, it is usually due to nipple confusion from having taken a bottle. It is much less work to get milk from a bottle than from the breast. It is important to delay introducing a bottle until breastfeeding is well established, around 4-6 weeks. Early on, a baby may reject the breast if the baby is experiencing discomfort in a certain position. This can happen from the baby's journey through the birth canal. A session or two with a cranial sacral therapist will often help with this issue.
 
What if your baby has trouble sucking?
 
Kelly: A baby may have trouble sucking if it is premature, tired, or if the baby has a physical problem. Babies who are premature often have trouble latching on to the breast. If this is the case you can pump your milk and feed the baby with a syringe until the baby is strong enough to latch onto the breast. If a baby is term and is having difficulty sucking, the baby may be feeling discomfort in its neck or jaw and may just need an adjustment from a cranial sacral therapist.
 
In very rare cases (less than 2%) the baby may have a tight frenulum causing the baby to be "tongue-tied." You can tell if your baby is tongue tied by looking at him, and sticking out your tongue. The baby will imitate you. If he cannot fully extend his tongue, or if the tip of the tongue looks heart shaped he may be tongue tied. If this is the case, have the baby checked by your doctor. It is often possible for the doctor to snip the frenulum which allows the tongue to extend and breastfeeding can continue.  
 
Is goat’s milk closer to human milk than cow’s milk?
 
Susan: I’m not sure why they [people] say this. “They” are wrong. Goat’s milk is strikingly similar to cow’s milk. Both a cow’s and a goat’s milk are higher in protein (which makes sense considering how much faster they need to grow than human babies), higher in saturated fat, and lower in carbohydrate than human breast milk. Goat’s milk and cow’s milk are very similar across the nutrient board (macronutrients and micronutrients). Goat’s milk is actually a little higher in saturated fat than cow’s milk – human milk is the lowest.
 
If your baby has a food allergy or sensitivity do the allergens from your diet get passed on through breast milk?
 
Kelly: Allergens do pass through the breast milk. Dairy is the number one cause of colic in babies. Most often babies do fine with their mother's diets. If a baby is having a problem with something in their mother's diet, the baby may become uncomfortable, fussy and gassy. If the baby is hungry, comes to the breast, and then cries not wanting to latch or bats her head back and forth, and seems to be having extra discomfort, she may be having a reaction to something in the mother's diet. There is a wide range of foods that babies can be fussy with, but dairy, chocolate, and cruciferous vegetables (cabbage, Brussels sprouts etc…) seem to be the most usual culprits.

What are the most common allergens? Dairy/soy?
 
Susan: Breastfed babies have a much better shot at not developing allergies because drinking mother’s breastmilk, where common allergens are met first by Mom’s immune system, protects the baby (La Leche League International (LLLI) has information about this). Otherwise, allergies developed in adolescence are often times the same allergies suffered by the child’s parents, in other words, inherited.
 
Is breastfeeding painful?
 
Alicia: It can be, but just at first. What I've been told is it’s important to have the bonding latch right away. Everyone I know who had pain in the beginning says how amazing it was after the first two weeks - that the insane feelings of ecstasy while baby nurses are the best ever, and that it's so worth the baracuda jaws for two weeks. Also, I have seen and heard so much about how the baby, when first put on the chest immediately after birth, will crawl up to your nipple after a while and open its mouth like a little bird looking for the nipple. How cute and precious is that?

Kelly: Breastfeeding is a learned process. As much as we want it to be completely intuitive, it just isn't. We are no longer raising babies in villages filled with other women who are breastfeeding. We don't see it often. We don't grow up seeing our mothers, sisters, aunts, cousins and friends openly breastfeeding. It is sad, but it is our reality. I recommend that every woman who is about to have a baby have a very good lactation consultant available to them after the birth of the baby. Some hospitals offer lactation consultants, but they only serve a few hours a day, and are not available all the time, or after the mother goes home. Have someone you can call at anytime who can come to you and help you. There are so many teeny tiny things that can cause major problems and pain if not corrected right away. You would never know what these are unless you have someone very experienced to help you.
 
For most, breastfeeding is uncomfortable for the first couple of weeks. Mostly because you have never had someone stimulating your nipples constantly for hours and days at a time before! That being said, if there is excruciating pain, cracking, or bleeding, that is not normal, and you should absolutely seek out help from a good lactation consultant.  
 
Can a vegan diet promote allergies in a baby?
 
Alicia: No way! Susan and Christina addressed this in my second pregnancy blog.  
 
Where exactly is isolated soy found so we can avoid it?
 
Alicia: I go into detail about this in my recent blog about soy. Check it out if you haven’t had a chance to read it yet!
 
Would you like to share your breastfeeding advice with the community? Share your thoughts in the comments below, and I may feature them on the homepage of The Kind Life!

A while back, a few members of the community suggested the book Orgasmic Birth to me, and I happened to be reading it at the time. I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to or thinking about having a baby! I think this book was my favorite birth book of all the books I read. If you are pregnant now, read it ASAP. It was such a good read, and there is also a great film called Orgasmic Birth. The film was just amazing - I can't recommend it enough! I hope every woman in the world gets to see this film and read this book. What a gift!

The film is a documentary about the natural process of birth, and how women can get back to experiencing birth as an intensely joyful event. It was very informative.
 
I watched the film with my dear friend Alex (you know her from her previous guest blog), who was visiting me from Alabama. She said she couldn’t stop talking about the film to all her friends after she saw it. She felt kind of gypped, because she saw it after she’d already given birth to her three super cute, healthy babies! I couldn’t stop talking about it either – it was so trippy and intense and wonderful – it made me almost cry every single time a woman held her baby!
 
So, for any of you who are contemplating a new baby, this documentary is a must-see! And be sure to pick up the book too. Are there any other great pregnancy or childrearing books you would recommend?

My husband and I welcomed our 7 lb 15 oz baby boy Bear Blu Jarecki into the world on May 5th at 7:50am (PT). We are all three in love! I'm so grateful to this community for all the love, support, good wishes and happy vibes you've sent me during my pregnancy...it has been wonderful. Thank you all!

Recently, I shared parts one and two of my interview about natural pregnancy and childbirth with my friend Fatim. Here is her take on raising her son Adam as a superhero baby!

How do you feed Adam? What’s a typical meal for him?

Warren and I often get a question like “does Adam eat macrobiotic food?” Of course, he does! He eats what we eat. Some adjustments need to be made for babies and little ones, but overall, he eats grains, beans, vegetables, seaweed, fruits, nut butters.
A typical meal would be : rice patties, wrapped in nori, pan-fried tofu, sautéed broccoli. It usually includes a type of grain (pasta, rice, brown or white, quinoa, couscous …), a vegetable dish, and a protein dish, most of the time.

What are his favorite foods?

Nori is a favorite, he calls it “nama" - so cute!! He loves tofu, and mochi!!! He loves broccoli too, and baby bok choy.

When he is around other little ones, how do you deal with food? You said it’s not an issue yet..like you made cupcakes and he wasn’t really interested?

Adam goes to daycare for a few days a week, and I cook for him in the morning so he has some nice quality food. Right now, there isn’t any issue; he eats what I make all the time. He just loves the food - he finds it delicious!! For his birthday, I made your Favorite Cupcake recipe from your book (it is my favorite now too!), and he was the only one not eating it. The thing is, he doesn’t see cupcakes on a regular basis, so he was fine without them. I am sure it will change soon …. But Warren and I will make some nice, good quality treats, naturally sweetened and homemade. I have made him some cookies, or muffins, but he’s just not into them, so I end up eating them and sharing them with my friends, and their little ones too.
 
Ok, cloth diapers versus eco diapers?

So, this is the funny thing: while 8 months pregnant, I went to a class on cloth diapers, and was so determined to use them. And then, I just felt it was too much for me to handle, with taking care of our baby and myself too, so we did and still do chlorine free diapers.

Did he sleep with you? And if so, for how long? If not why? What were your thoughts on that?

He did for the first 3 months, and after that, we put him in his crib, in his own bedroom. I think it is very important to have the baby with you at the beginning, I believe that babies are not meant to sleep alone for the first few months. In all the traditional societies, babies were sleeping with their parents. For how long? I think it is a personal choice. But I believe parents know better for their babies, so whatever you choose to do is fine, as long as you feel confident about it, and have no after-thoughts or guilt.
 
Fatim has these final thoughts to share…

Pregnancy is the most important time in a woman's life to eat well. It is very important to eat a wide variety of foods. The baby needs a broad selection of ingredients and nutrients to choose from. Eating in a balanced manner will improve your health and the health of your baby. 

No doubt cravings come up during pregnancy and the best way to satisfy them is to choose the best quality of what you are craving. If you crave a food like ice cream, try to satisfy it first with a healthy alternative. If you cannot satisfy it there, have a small amount and really enjoy it.

Please, no guilt around food choices.  Simply try to choose the best options and make yourself satisfied. Your baby's taste for food comes from your taste during this time.
 
Thank you, Fatim! Are any of you kind lifers raising a superhero baby or young child? How is it going?