Healthy Mum, Happy Baby

Well, after not posting for ages there’s so much nutrition stuff going on this week that I’m all in a lather.

I heard this on the news last night and wanted to follow up and then I saw it on Treehugger, so wanted to share: Debate Over Seafood and Pregnancy Rages On .

A well-respected coalition of scientists from private groups and federal agencies are saying that  pregnant and breast-feeding women should eat at least 12 oz of fish and seafood weekly for their baby’s optimal brain development.

However, the US government still recommends that pregnant and breastfeeding women eat no more than 12 oz per week as mercury contamination is an issue. Health Canada’s recommendations seem to revolve more around tinned tuna than fish in general, but all in all I’m stumped. Between conflicting info on Vitamin D and Seafoood who’s to know what to do? All I know for sure is I didn’t take enough Vitamin  D or eat enough Seafood (given these new recommendations) while pregnant and nursing, so for those of us past the stage of being able to help our babies develop it’s a bit depressing. Mind you, all you can do is what you know that the time.  I’m going to see if I can track down a dietitian and see if I can get more info…

Here’s more info: www.brainybabieshealthykids.org/press-release-100407/

Well, now the Canadian Paediatric Society is recommending that women who are pregnant and nursing take 2000 IU of Vitamin D daily.  And even that may not be enough to ensure that babies are protected against an increased risk of asthma, diabetes, autoimmune diseases, multiple sclerosis, dental malformation and inflammatory bowel disease – all of which have been linked to Vitamin D deficiencies early in life.

And the Canadian Cancer Society is recommending that adults take 1,000 IU of Vitamin D daily, as it can help lower your risk of several types of cancer including breast, lung and colon.

So let all the preggo & breastfeeding women you know know…

So while I have been following the recommendations from Health Canada I’m starting to wonder. I think I’ll find a nutritionist and do a piece on it for yoyomama (and add all the details here as well of course!)

I saw this article on CBC.ca today about toxic pollutants:

Toxic pollutants kill up to 25,000 Canadians annually: B.C. study

This line in particular freaked me out, “There are many contaminants individuals simply can’t avoid. They’re invisible. We can’t see them. We can’t smell them. We can’t taste them.”

So does that mean I should just give up on feeding my kid’s organic food whenever possible and trying to weed out their more toxic looking toys? I think I’ll keep working from the every little bit helps point of view, but still, it’s kind of depressing.