20 Best Foods to Eat for Postpartum Recovery

Here I’ll be sharing the 20 best foods to eat for postpartum recovery. These foods are easy to incorporate into meals or eat on its own. I give examples on how you how you can incorporate these foods into your daily meals during postpartum.

Your postpartum should be one of the most cherished times of your motherhood journeys. For me personally, I did not think too much about my postpartum with my first two babies. Like many women, I focused so much on the birth and newborn essentials, that I didn’t think much about my own personal recovery that actually has a huge impact on the menopausal period.

It wasn’t until my third birth, after I studied postpartum nutrition, that I intentionally set time aside to plan for an optimal postpartum. And let me just tell you; it was pure bliss!

I hired a postpartum doula, made postpartum snacks and froze them in advance. I moved around slowly and rested when I felt that my body needed it. This is extremely important during the first 4-6 weeks after you give birth. And I enjoyed my postpartum immeasurably more than I did with my first two babies.

Why is food so important for postpartum recovery?

Many quality foods that include Vitamin D3, calcium, choline, probiotics, Omega 3 and iodine, to name a few, each play different roles in supporting your postpartum recovery.

For example, Vitamin D3 foods like salmon and egg yolks support the health of your thyroid, and lack of has been linked with postpartum depression (study).

Omega 3 plays a role in stress regulation and once again, can support postpartum mental health (study).

Probiotics, included in high quality fermented foods and probiotic supplementation, encourages a healthy digestion, strengthens the immune system and has even been shown to reduce the risk of mastitis (study).

Nutrients like calcium, if not consumed via diet, will nourish your baby (if you are breastfeeding) by utilising your calcium stores from your bones! How incredible is that? Nevertheless, calcium consumption is important so that you are getting enough for your own recovery.

Why women often neglect their postpartum care

If you’re already a mother, you probably know the answer to this. But the truth is, we often put our needs last, especially if caring for a newborn.

This is especially true for first-time mothers, who think they can continue living the way they did before having a baby. Newsflash: you definitely can’t!

It’s hard adjusting to having a new baby. Whether you are staring at your newborn all day long, or trying to maintain a tidy home, your postpartum care is essential.

Studies have shown that the way you look after your body during postpartum impacts your body for years to come, all the way up to menopause! If women truly knew this, I believe they would spend more time taking care of their postpartum needs.

20 Best Foods to Eat for Postpartum Recovery

These foods will support your postpartum recovery in various ways, so I’m going to break down why they are optimal for postpartum recovery and how you can incorporate them into your postpartum diet.

Vitamin D3 foods

Like I previously stated, Vitamin D3 supports the health of your thyroid, and lack of has been linked with postpartum depression. The mother’s Vitamin D3 levels at birth determine her baby’s Vitamin D3 levels, so if you are concerned about your Vitamin D3 levels, supplementation is recommended for both you and baby (of course, get these levels tested and see your doctor about this).

The best Vitamin D3 foods:

1. Salmon (baked with garlic, lemon and butter is delicious!)
2. Mackerel (roasted mackerel with garlic and paprika recipe)
3. Milk (unhomogenized is best! – try my chocolate mineral milk here)
4. Eggs (organic or free-ranged is best! Make a delicious veggie omelette)
5. Beef liver (sprinkle desiccated beef liver over meals/add it into your spaghetti bolognese – you won’t even taste it)

Probiotic-rich foods

Probiotics are key to optimal healing, because it supports your gut health. Getting your gut health back on track after giving birth will decrease the chances of sickness occurring, especially when your immune system is compromised.

It’s also a great way to nourish your baby’s gut through your breastmilk. So eating probiotic-rich foods is important for both you and baby.

The best probiotic-rich foods:

1. Plain yoghurt (with no added sugar. Make a yoghurt and berry parfait!)
2. Sauerkraut (source this from a health food store over the supermarket shelf! My favourite brand of sauerkraut is this one)
3. Kefir (make some delicious kefir popsicles. Recipe here)

Omega 3 foods

As mentioned, omega 3 plays a role in stress regulation and once again, can support postpartum mental health! If you are more prone to depression, like me, then, incorporating omega 3 foods is a must!

Omega 3 foods:

1. Tuna (make some tuna pasta bake!)
2. Whitefish (make some baked whitefish with lemon and garlic!)
3. Flaxseed (ALA only: add some flaxseeds into your breakfast smoothie)
4. Hemp seeds (ALA only: sprinkle some hemp seeds over some yoghurt)

Choline-rich foods

Choline is important for a mother’s liver health and has many health advantages for baby, such as supporting baby’s brain development and nervous system.

Choline-rich foods:

1. Brussel sprouts (before you say ‘gross’, try baking them in butter or olive oil with garlic and thank me later!)
2. Lamb (slow cooked lamb with a delicious bone broth anyone?)
3. Lentils (lentil pasta is delicious. Recipe here)
4. Cottage cheese (I’ve heard that sprinkling cottage cheese over baked eggs is delicious!)

Iron-rich foods

Iron is important for postpartum, especially if you have lost a lot of blood at birth or your iron stores were low during pregnancy. Anemia is also linked to postpartum depression.

Iron-rich foods:

1. Pork/beef liver (you can find desiccated liver and sprinkle it over meals if you don’t want to eat it on its own)
2. Canned sardines (a great recipe here)
3. Cooked quinoa (cooking quinoa in bone broth and adding it to a nourish bowl is delicious and versatile)
4. Spinach (wilted spinach in pasta or in an omelette – so tasty!)

Don’t get overwhelmed by what you should eat

If you are eating a balanced, varied diet, then you are likely getting most of the nutrients you need for optimal postpartum recovery. So don’t stress if you don’t think you can incorporate all of these foods into your diet – they are just to give some inspiration as to what you can eat during this time of healing and recovery.

The best thing you can do if you are preparing for your postpartum, is making food and freezing it in advance! If so, I definitely recommend incorporating these foods into your meals!

Some favourite postpartum essentials

In preparing for my fourth baby, I would only recommend products that I deem essential for postpartum care! Here are some favourites that I recommend:

Need some low-toxic glass tupperware for postpartum food storage? Click here.

I only used re-usable breast-pads because they were softer on the skin and were easier to use than disposable ones. Need some reusable organic breast-pads? Click here.

I used a clary sage oil for my second and third births and it was a lifesaver in minimising my contraction pain. It’s also great to use for afterpains (which no one talks about when you have your first baby!) Need a clary sage oil for labour and postpartum abdominal pain? Click here.

Are you currently pregnant and want a resource for nourishing your pregnancy and birth?

Grab my e-book Your Holistic Guide for Pregnancy Nutrition that covers:

– Which foods to eat during trimesters one, two and three
– Which supplements to consider and the best quality to consume
– How to nutritionally support common pregnancy conditions, like nausea, headaches, heartburn, fatigue, constipation, insomnia, UTI’s, Group B Strep, Gestational Hypertension and Gestational Diabetes.
– How to nourish your labour with foods and natural techniques that have been shown to ease and quicken labour.

You’ll also find food inspiration with my favourite 15 pregnancy recipes and meal plans for each trimester.

Are you prepared for your postpartum? Tell me in the comments which foods you’re keen to eat during postpartum!