Breastfeeding and Weight Loss: Surprising Truths You Need to Know!

Many women wonder how to return to their pre-pregnancy shape and weight after giving birth. Breastfeeding is often touted as a natural way to shed those extra pounds, but the reality is more nuanced. This article explores the relationship between breastfeeding and weight loss, providing evidence-based information and practical tips for nursing mothers.

The Calorie Connection: Breastfeeding as a Natural Calorie Burner

Breastfeeding requires a significant amount of energy. To produce milk, your body burns approximately 500-700 kcal (calories) or 2,100 - 2,900 kJ (kilojoules) per day. Some of this energy is derived from stored body fat. In theory, this calorie expenditure should lead to weight loss. Exclusive breastfeeding eats up about 595 calories a day during the first two months of a baby’s life, increasing to 695 calories a day as the baby gets bigger. In theory, then, for every week a woman breastfeeds she should be able to lose about half a kilogram, getting back to her pre-pregnancy weight within two months.

However, the impact of breastfeeding on weight loss isn't always straightforward. Several factors can influence a mother's ability to lose weight while breastfeeding.

Why Breastfeeding Alone May Not Be Enough

Despite the increased calorie burn, many women find that breastfeeding alone doesn't automatically lead to weight loss. Several reasons contribute to this:

Increased Appetite: The breastfeeding hormone prolactin can increase appetite.
Sleep Deprivation: A common side effect of having a baby, skews the balance of the “hunger hormones” leptin and ghrelin, prompting cravings for sweet, salty and starchy foods.
Lifestyle Changes: Breastfeeding is a sedentary business, and new mums are often too busy - and too exhausted - to find time to exercise.
Dietary Choices: Breastfeeding is widely regarded as a licence to eat cake; a generous slice of carrot cake with cream cheese frosting contains about 650 calories; even a skinny blueberry muffin from Starbucks contains 268 calories. Add a grande latte to that, at 230 calories, and you have already pretty much busted any calorie-deficit acquired through breastfeeding.
Biological Differences: Biological differences will mean that some women will find it easier to lose weight, and others harder.
Individual Variation: Some women naturally hold onto a little bit of weight while they’re nursing.

Studies measuring the effect of breastfeeding on weight loss have found only a small effect: a review of five studies, which regularly weighed and measured women post-birth, concluded that after 12 months, breastfeeding mums had lost between 0.6kg and 2kg more weight than mums who didn’t breastfeed.

Safe Weight Loss Strategies for Breastfeeding Mothers

Weight loss during breastfeeding is possible and can be safe for both you and your baby, but it requires a balanced approach. Here are some recommended strategies:

1. Timing is Key:

Wait Before Actively Trying to Lose Weight: It’s usually recommended that you wait at least six to eight weeks after birth before actively trying to lose weight. Your body is recovering from birth and getting used to making milk.
Ensure Milk Supply is Established: Wait at least two months for your milk supply to be firmly established before actively trying to lose weight.
Give Yourself Time to Recover: Your body needs time to recover from childbirth. If you lose weight too soon after childbirth, it can take longer for you to recover. Give yourself until your 6-week checkup before trying to slim down.

2. Focus on a Healthy, Balanced Diet:

Nutrient-Dense Foods: Choose a wide variety of nutrient-dense foods (foods high in nutrients). Nutrient-dense foods provide a lot of nutritional content for the amount of calories (kcal/kJ) they contain.
Increase Whole Foods: Focus on a diet rich in whole foods like fruits, vegetables, lean proteins/ plant proteins, whole grains, and healthy fats (unsaturated plant oils). These foods are nutritious and can help you feel full longer.
Eat Enough Calories: In general, nursing mothers should consume a minimum of 1,800 calories per day. Women who are exclusively breastfeeding need about 500 more calories per day than they did before pregnancy. Get these calories from healthy food choices such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein.
Moderate Calorie Reduction: For breastfeeding, an average of 250-500 extra calories needs to be added to your basal metabolic rate when determining a daily caloric goal. The basal metabolic rate is the amount of energy expended per day for basic bodily functions (like your heart beating and digestion). Activity level is also a factor in determining what your daily caloric goal should be.
Frequent, Smaller Meals: Eat 5 to 6 small meals a day with healthy snacks in between (rather than 3 larger meals). Eating smaller, balanced meals more frequently throughout the day can help maintain energy levels and prevent overeating.
Include Fiber-Rich Foods: Foods that are high in fiber, like fruits, vegetables, legumes (beans), and whole grains, can help you feel full and satisfied.
Incorporate Healthy Fats: Include sources of healthy fats like avocados, nuts, seeds, and olive oil.
Limit Processed Foods and Sugars: Reduce the intake of ultra-processed foods, sugary snacks, and beverages. These are high in added sugars, sodium, and fat, and are less satisfying. They can contribute to weight gain and provide less nutritional value.
Choose Whole Fruit Over Fruit Juice: Whole fruit gives you vitamins and nutrients and contains more fiber, which helps you feel full with fewer calories. Fruit juices should be taken in moderation because they can contribute extra calories.
Choose Broiled or Baked Rather than Fried Foods: Limit sweets, sugar, saturated fat and trans-fats. Do not go on a crash diet (not eating enough) or a fad diet (popular diets that limit certain types of foods and nutrients).
Sample Meal Plans:
- Regular: Oatmeal with banana and almonds (Breakfast), Greek yogurt with honey (Snack), Grilled chicken salad (Lunch), Apple slices with peanut butter (Snack), Baked salmon with quinoa and broccoli (Dinner), Whole grain crackers with cheese (Snack).
- Vegan: Vegan smoothie (Breakfast), Apple with almond butter (Snack), Quinoa salad (Lunch), Hummus with veggie sticks (Snack), Tofu stir-fry with brown rice (Dinner), Trail mix (Snack).
- Dairy and Gluten-Free: Scrambled eggs with spinach and bell peppers (Breakfast), Banana with almond butter (Snack), Grilled chicken salad (Lunch), Carrot sticks with hummus (Snack), Baked salmon with quinoa and asparagus (Dinner), Rice cakes with avocado (Snack).
Healthy Snack Ideas: Fruit and nut butter, trail mix, veggie sticks with hummus, boiled eggs, energy bites, cheese sticks, smoothie, protein bars, roasted chickpea snacks, popcorn, dried fruit packs, vegetable chips, rice cake packs.

3. Stay Hydrated:

Drink Plenty of Fluids: Breastfeeding women also lose an average of 25 ounces of fluid a day through their milk. It’s important to stay hydrated and eat a nutrient-dense diet similar to what you ate during pregnancy.
Aim for 12 Cups a Day: Drink at least 12 cups of fluid a day.
Keep a Water Bottle Handy: Keep a water bottle near the spot where you usually feed the baby, that way you'll remember to drink when they do.
Limit Sugary Drinks: Limit drinks like sodas, juices, and other fluids with added sugar and calories. They can add up and keep you from losing weight.
Avoid Artificial Sweeteners: Avoid products with artificial sweeteners.

4. Incorporate Exercise Gradually:

Start Gentle Movement Soon After Giving Birth: You can start gentle movement soon after giving birth.
Check with Your Healthcare Provider: It’s usually safe to start more vigorous exercise around 6-12 weeks - check with your healthcare provider if you’re not sure.
Work Back into a Routine Gradually: Try a brisk walk with your baby, gentle yoga, swimming, or another favorite form of physical fitness to encourage your body to shed those extra pounds.
Exercise is Great for Other Aspects of Health and Fitness, Too: Exercise is great for other aspects of health and fitness, too.
Start Slowly: If you're new to exercise or resuming postpartum, begin with low-impact activities like walking or gentle yoga when you feel ready. Moderate and intense exercises should never be started until you are cleared by your OBGYN. This typically occurs around 6-12 weeks after delivery, depending on your recovery.
Walking: Walking 10,000 steps per day has been shown to aid in weight loss. This can be enhanced if 3,500 of those steps are done with moderate intensity. Start with a small goal and gradually increase as your time and energy allow.
Aim for 150 Minutes of Moderate-Intensity Exercise: Aim to work up to 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week, as recommended by the CDC. Keep in mind that every activity counts! You don't have to spend hours at the gym to make progress. Simply increasing your physical activity will result in greater caloric burn (dance parties in the living room, stroller walks to the park, bike rides, swimming, hiking, etc. Keep it simple and FUN!)
Pelvic Floor Exercises: It is important to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles after pregnancy. If you have incontinence, low back pain, pelvic pain, or bulging/coning in your abdomen, it is advised that you see a pelvic floor physical therapist before starting any exercise program.

5. Mindful Eating Habits:

Do Not Skip Meals: With a new baby, many new moms forget to eat. If you do not eat, you will have less energy, and it will not help you lose weight.
Eat Breakfast: Even if you do not normally eat in the mornings, get into the habit of having breakfast. It will give you energy to start your day and stop you from feeling tired later.
Slow Down: When you take your time eating, you will notice that it is easier to tell that you are full. It is tempting to multitask, but if you focus on your meal you will be less likely to overeat.

6. Manage Expectations:

Pregnancy Causes Lasting Changes in the Body: You may not be able to return to your exact pre-pregnancy shape. For many women, pregnancy causes lasting changes in the body. You may have a softer belly, wider hips, and a larger waistline. Make your goals about your new body realistic.

7. Consult Professionals:

Consult a Healthcare Provider or Registered Dietitian: It's advisable to consult with a healthcare provider or a registered dietitian before starting any weight loss plan, especially while breastfeeding. Many health insurance plans include nutrition consults (sometimes at no cost)! Look at your benefits to see if that is an option for you.
Lactation Specialist, Pediatrician or Doctor: If you’re concerned about your milk supply, a lactation specialist, your child’s pediatrician or your doctor can help you get to the root of the problem.

Foods and Substances to Be Mindful Of

Caffeine: If you want caffeine, you can drink up to 200 milligrams per day (about two 8-ounce cups of coffee) without any worries. Also, experts note that younger babies are more sensitive to caffeine in breast milk. If an infant appears to be more fussy or irritable after the mother consumes high amounts of caffeine, she should consider decreasing her intake.
Alcohol: To be safe, you should wait two hours after having a drink to feed your baby. (One standard drink is 12 ounces of regular beer, 5 ounces of wine or 1½ ounces of liquor.) Alcohol enters breastmilk and then the level decreases over time, similar to the way it gradually leaves your blood.
Fish: Breastfeeding women must be careful about the amount and types of seafood they consume. Most fish contain mercury that can pass from mother to infant through breast milk. If you eat fish caught by family or friends, check for fish advisories. Limit serving size. Mercury can be harmful to the brain and nervous system of any person exposed to too much over time. Thus, lower mercury fish are a good choice for everyone.
Vegan/Vegetarian Diets: Breastfed infants of women who do not consume any animal products may have very limited amounts of vitamin B12. Low amounts of vitamin B12 can put infants at risk of neurological damage from vitamin B12 deficiency. Iron may also be of concern.
Weight Loss Medications: Oral weight loss medications are generally not compatible with breastfeeding due to the likelihood that some will enter milk and cause appetite suppression in infants along with other possible side effects depending on the medication. The InfantRisk Center is currently studying injectable GLP1 drugs for weight loss (Wegovy, Ozempic and Mounjaro, etc.) in breast milk to determine their safety. These medications work by decreasing appetite and slowing down the digestion process. Patients that use these medications typically experience nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea which could lead to dehydration and decreased milk supply in lactating women. If you are using one of these medications, we highly recommend that you take a high-quality prenatal vitamin.

Debunking Breastfeeding Myths

Myth: Breastfeeding automatically melts away pregnancy weight.
- Reality: Many people find that they hold on to a little bit of weight while they’re nursing.
Myth: Certain foods cause gas in breastfed babies.
- Reality: For a majority of people, what you eat is not going to make your baby feel bad. However, your breast milk does change flavor depending on what you consume. Breast milk flavors accustom your child to the types of foods your family eats. It’s a different story for babies who have a food allergy or sensitivity, most commonly a reaction to dairy in the mother’s diet.

Special Diets and Breastfeeding

Low-Carbohydrate Diets: Low carbohydrate diets such as the Atkins or Paleo methods are thought to be safe, as long as you eat a good variety of fruits, vegetables, proteins, and enough total calories
Very Low-Carb or Keto Diets: Some case studies suggest that very low-carb or strict “keto” diets while breastfeeding may result in serious medical effects such as lactational ketoacidosis
Intermittent Fasting (IF): Time-restricted eating is not recommended during breastfeeding. We don’t have enough information to know whether it’s safe. In theory, it could put you at risk of nutrition deficiencies.
Supplements and Shakes: Supplements, shakes, and similar items marketed for weight loss are not generally recommended during breastfeeding.

Read also: Losing Weight Safely While Nursing

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