9 BLOOD SUGAR BALANCING SNACKs FOR BREASTFEEDING A BABY WITH FOOD ALLERGIES
When you’re breastfeeding, eating a blood sugar balancing, protein rich, nutrient dense diet with enough calories is essential for boosting milk supply, delivering proper nutrition to baby and ensuring that you’re replenishing the nutrient stores that we lose during pregnancy. And that means snacks are an important part of the day! But when we eat carbohydrates alone (no matter the meal time), it can spike our blood sugar and send us crashing- quite the opposite of what we want to do when we’re already sleep deprived! So we want to look for snacks that are either primarily protein and fat or pair a lower carbohydrate snack with protein and/or fat.
As a mama who is currently breastfeeding a baby with food allergies, I know that finding protein and healthy fat based snack choices can start to become limited. I can tell you tons of Gluten free/Dairy Free or even Gluten Free/Nut Free options, but if you’re gluten, dairy AND nut free… I totally get that snack options can seem impossible. I’m right there with you! That’s why I wanted to share some quick and easy blood sugar balancing snack ideas that double as easy toddler snacks too! Blood sugar balance is so important for our kiddos too- most toddler snack ideas are primarily carbs, but they need balanced blood sugar just as much as we do for their mood and energy!
I like to have snacks prepped or at least have an idea of the snacks I’m going to have that day, as well as in easy to access places. In the early days of nursing, that meant I added some snacks to my rocking chair side table. Now that I have an almost 8 month old, it means having foods prepped in the fridge or bringing a Chomps stick with me in my diaper bag. Putting some quick planning into place reduces decision fatigue and will make it less tempting to reach for those “safe” cookies that aren’t doing much for our blood sugar. I also make sure to have my own allergy safe section in the fridge and pantry so I’m not accidentally reaching for a snack I used to eat pre allergies.
So without further ado… some of my favorite snack choices!
Chomps Sticks- When my daughter Palmer was diagnosed with a milk allergy, I felt pretty confident navigating the food aspect because I have done many an elimination/Whole 30. But when I researched further, one of the biggest shockers to me was finding out that there is sneaky dairy in SO MANY THINGS that was never underscored in elimination diets- including an ingredient often found in most charcuterie/meat sticks (lactose starter culture acid). Not all Lactose starter culture is dairy derived, but a good amount is. You can email the manufacturer to confirm if it’s dairy derived and some products list that their Lactose is not dairy derived on their website (like Chomps!). A bonus for Chomps is that my toddler LOVES them!
Crudite and Guac- One of my work besties turned me on to “crudite” a long time ago and it always made having veggies and dip in the “low carb days” seem more fun. It’s also just plain easier to dip! Of course, if you’re really in the party mood, Siete chips go great with guac (just portion out the serving for blood sugar balance because healthier or not they are still addicting!)
Turkey Roll Ups- I love the brand Diestel Family Farms because of their clean ingredients. Their fresh roasted deli turkey is only ONE ingredient- turkey! You can roll it up with a nut free fat sauce (i.e. guac or hummus) to give a little extra flavor.
Sun Butter Sandwiches- I used to love those Keebler cheese and PB sandwich crackers as a kid, and prior to my daughter Palmer’s allergies, I made a healthier version using Peanut Butter and the cheesy Simple Mills almond flour based crackers. But now that we are nut free and peanut free, I’m switching to the Simple Mills seed flour based crackers and using Sun Butter, which is made from sunflower seeds! Perfect for a little healthier childhood nostalgia snack.
Go Macro Kids Bar- These are a little higher in carbs, so this won’t be a match for everyone’s blood sugar, but I do find a have a little higher carb tolerance while breastfeeding. Their Oatmeal and Choco Chip flavor is nut free and delicious for a sweet treat that you can just throw in the diaper bag.
Egg Salad- We get a dairy free egg salad that’s pre-prepared from our local health store or you can make on your own and have in the fridge for the week. I love either eating it on it’s own or if I’m hungrier using it as a dip with the Simple Mills seed flour crackers!
Yogurt Bowl- Cocojune coconut yogurt mixed with some protein powder (my favorite is Be Well by Kelly’s) and you can also top with some berries!
Quick Smoothie- You can also shake up some protein powder with coconut or sunflower seed milk as a really quick and easy way to up your protein intake! You can also add a little coconut oil for an added healthy fat boost.
Meatballs- Ensuring we have adequate protein is important for all seasons, but especially breastfeeding. One of my favorite protein rich snacks is to prep some meatballs that I can have for the week or put in the freezer for later. I make my meatballs just with grass fed beef or pork mixture, seasoning and egg, so they’re simple to cook and make a great “pop-able” real food snack.
Hydration- Don’t forget to stay hydrated during the day- drinking water alone is often not enough to fully hydrate us... and Hydration is also a KEY factor in boosting milk supply without crashing your blood sugar (like lactation cookies often can). I love LMNT Elecrolytes and always feel a little burst of energy after I take them too!
I know that breastfeeding a baby is tough let alone adding allergies to the mix- I want you to know you’ve got this mama!
