Natural Mama: Healthy choices for mother and baby

A question came up today from one of the members in the parenting/breastfeeding group that I belong to.  Upon responding, I realized I needed to put that information here.

Thrush is such a huge obstacle when it comes to breastfeeding.  One of the moms in my parenting group actually gave up nursing because of it (though she diligently pumped and fed her baby breastmilk for six months, bless her heart!).  Thrush can be very painful, and sometimes you can’t even tell that you have it.  For example, one of the symptoms is pink nipples (which doesn’t help much if your nipples are normally pink!).  Here is a list of symptoms from Dr Jay Gordon’s website:

I’ll add that the nipples can get white “flakes” on them, looking like dead skin cells that won’t come off.

I had noticed in my son that his lips looked like they had a whitish translucent film on the inner side of them.  I didn’t really think much of it, it was pretty faint.  It wasn’t until it got worse and he also developed patches inside his cheeks that I realized what it was.  The very first symptom was nipple pain, though.  Nursing hurt, which I originally attributed to latch problems.  After I noticed the thrush, I realized it was probably the thrush that was making it hurt so bad!

I diligently searched the web for a natural remedy.  The remedies I found were gentian violet, Nystatin (this is an anti-fungal drug), and grapefruit seed extract (GSE).  I couldn’t find the GSE at first, so we got a prescription for Nystatin.  Nystatin is a gentle drug and it goes right through the baby’s digestive tract without being absorbed into the bloodstream, so it is very safe.  It is squirted into the cheeks of the baby.  It can also be used on your nipples.  But most brands are made with sugar, and sugar feeds yeast.  My son’s thrush actually got worse after I gave him this.  I was going to try gentian violet next, but then I read of an Australian study that linked over-use of gentian violet to mouth cancer.  It’s very powerful, and will probably work, but I don’t recommend it as a first option.  It also stains purple.  I tried vinegar on my nipples (a home remedy) but that just irritated it, and Clortrimazole anti-fungal cream (recommended by my baby’s doctor) which furthur irritated it and didn’t work.  Plus, I didn’t like the idea of my baby nursing from a nipple coated in that stuff.

So, I looked again for the GSE and found it at a supermarket that is stocked with natural remedies.  It’s not very expensive, and works great as a natural antiseptic, so it’s good to have on hand, anyway.  Basically, to use it for thrush, you put 10-20 drops (depending on resistence of the thrush) into one ounce of distilled water and apply it to the nipple.  I only had to apply it once or twice a day, but if your thrush is really bad you may have to do it more.  It worked quickly and effectively for me.  I also let my nipples dry out completely after each feeding (at night I would leave them uncovered).  Go braless if possible.  Get some sunlight on your breasts (sunlight kills yeasts and other germs).  For more information on treating with GSE see this article by Dr Jay Gordon.

To prevent recurrence (yeast is very stubborn) go braless when possible, and always let your nipples dry as much as possible after a feeding.  Eating a healthy diet with probiotics and low in sugar and processed foods may help, too.  Avoid unneccessary antibiotics.  The friendly bacteria in your body helps keep yeast in check.

For more tips on treating thrush, see Dr Sears website.  Try not to let the yeast get out of hand.  If any yeast infection is allowed to worsen excessively, it can cause serious problems.  If the treatment you try doesn’t work, please try another.  See a health care professional if your thrush (or other yeast infection) does not clear up.

Hello Readers,

Sorry there isn’t much on my blog yet.  I keep thinking of stuff to put on here, but I have been so busy “being pregnant.”  Pregnancy has been an incredible journey for me, and I can’t wait to share all the stuff I’ve learned.  But for now, my mind is very dedicated to the upcoming birth of my child.

Hopefully, after I get settled into life with my new baby, I will get on board filling this blog with lots of useful information and links.  It’s amazing the info you can find out there, if you just look hard enough.  There are some real treasures of knowledge that somehow just slip by unnoticed by the general public.  It’s sad, but true.  My goal is to collect these treasures and put them here for others to access.  Soon, I hope. 

I created this blog when I found out I was pregnant with my first child.  I was so gun-ho about having a perfect, healthy pregnancy, and subsequently raising the healthiest kid on the block.  Well, morning sickness and food adversion caught me off-guard, and it’s been a struggle to get back on track to my “healthy pregnancy” plans.  But every day I am doing better.  So grateful to be feeling better, and a bit wiser, and I am ready to start this blog.  Welcome to the Natural Mama Blog.