Does Maternal Diet Vary During the Postpartum Period According to Infant Feeding Type? The Observational Study GREEN MOTHER

Cabedo-Ferreiro, Rosa; Reyes-Lacalle, Azahara; Cos-Busquets, Judit; Colldeforns-Vidal, Margalida; Liutsko, Liudmila; García-Sierra, Rosa; Vicente-Hernández, Mª-Mercedes; Gómez-Masvidal, Miriam; Montero-Pons, Laura; Cazorla-Ortiz, Gemma; Torán-Monserrat, Pere; Falguera-Puig, Gemma; The GREEN MOTHER Group,

doi:10.3390/nu17071136

Open AccessArticle

Does Maternal Diet Vary During the Postpartum Period According to Infant Feeding Type? The Observational Study GREEN MOTHER

by

Rosa Cabedo-Ferreiro

^1,2,*,†,

Azahara Reyes-Lacalle

^2,3,†

,

Judit Cos-Busquets

^3,†

,

Margalida Colldeforns-Vidal

^1,†,

Liudmila Liutsko

^2,4,*,†

,

Rosa García-Sierra

^4,5

,

Mª-Mercedes Vicente-Hernández

^2,6

,

Miriam Gómez-Masvidal

^2,7,

Laura Montero-Pons

^2,8

,

Gemma Cazorla-Ortiz

^2,3,9,‡

,

Pere Torán-Monserrat

^{4,5,10,11,*,‡}

,

Gemma Falguera-Puig

^2,3,10,‡ and

The GREEN MOTHER Group

^§

¹

Reproductive and Sexual Healthcare (ASSIR) Granollers, Catalan Institute of Health (ICS), 08400 Granollers, Spain

²

Research Group on Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare (GRASSIR) (2021-SGR-793), 08007 Barcelona, Spain

³

Reproductive and Sexual Healthcare (ASSIR) Sabadell, Catalan Institute of Health (ICS), 08203 Sabadell, Spain

⁴

Metropolitan North Research Support Unit (USR), Jordi Gol i Gorina University Institute Foundation for Primary Health Care Research (IDIAP), 08303 Mataró, Spain

⁵

Multidisciplinary Research Group in Health and Society (GREMSAS) (2021-SGR-0148), 08007 Barcelona, Spain

⁶

Reproductive and Sexual Healthcare (ASSIR) Badalona–Sant Adrià, Catalan Institute of Health (ICS), 08930 Sant Adrià del Besós, Spain

⁷

Reproductive and Sexual Healthcare (ASSIR) Mataró, Catalan Institute of Health (ICS), 08302 Mataró, Spain

⁸

Reproductive and Sexual Healthcare (ASSIR) Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Catalan Institute of Health (ICS), 08921 Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain

⁹

Faculty of Nursing, Universitat de Barcelona, 08907 L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, Spain

¹⁰

The Institute for Health Science Research Germans Trias i Pujol (IGTP), 08916 Badalona, Spain

¹¹

Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universitat de Girona, 17003 Girona, Spain

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^*

Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

^†

These authors contributed equally to this work.

^‡

These authors contributed equally to this work.

^§

Collaborators of the GREEN MOTHER Group are provided in the Acknowledgments.

Nutrients 2025, 17(7), 1136; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17071136

Submission received: 9 February 2025 / Revised: 13 March 2025 / Accepted: 20 March 2025 / Published: 25 March 2025

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutrition Management in Neonatal Health)

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Abstract

Background: Breastfeeding mothers have an increased demand for nutrients, including increased intake of certain nutrients, and are recommended to consume a theoretical 500 extra kilocalories (kcal), follow a varied diet, and increase protein, carbohydrate, omega-3, iron, and vitamin D intake. Objectives: We sought to analyze mothers’ energy and nutrient intake and food habits during the postpartum period 6 weeks after delivery and to identify whether there are any differences between breastfeeding and non-breastfeeding mothers. Methods: This was a cross-sectional, multicenter observational study at seven sexual and reproductive healthcare centers in the Metropolitan North area of Barcelona (Spain). The sample comprised 393 women who responded to an infant feeding questionnaire and 24 h diet recall (24 HR). We used frequencies and medians for descriptive analysis as well as the chi-squared and Kruskal–Wallis tests for the bivariate analysis. Results: Mean energy intake was lower than the recommendations in 57% of participants. Mothers who exclusively breastfed consumed a median of 201 kcal more than non-breastfeeding mothers, although this was not significant. The intake of fatty acids and micronutrients, such as iron, calcium, magnesium, and especially vitamin D, was insufficient. Breastfeeding mothers consumed significantly more polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) (p = 0.0297): 15.4 g vs. 12.7 g per day. Conclusions: There are no significant differences between the diet of breastfeeding and non-breastfeeding women, except for PUFA intake. A general insufficient intake of the analyzed micronutrients was observed. Educational campaigns and dietary guidance from health professionals are a priority.

Keywords: maternal nutrition; postpartum period; breastfeeding; energy and nutrient intake; maternal nutritional physiological phenomena

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MDPI and ACS Style

Cabedo-Ferreiro, R.; Reyes-Lacalle, A.; Cos-Busquets, J.; Colldeforns-Vidal, M.; Liutsko, L.; García-Sierra, R.; Vicente-Hernández, M.-M.; Gómez-Masvidal, M.; Montero-Pons, L.; Cazorla-Ortiz, G.; et al. Does Maternal Diet Vary During the Postpartum Period According to Infant Feeding Type? The Observational Study GREEN MOTHER. Nutrients 2025, 17, 1136. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17071136

AMA Style

Cabedo-Ferreiro R, Reyes-Lacalle A, Cos-Busquets J, Colldeforns-Vidal M, Liutsko L, García-Sierra R, Vicente-Hernández M-M, Gómez-Masvidal M, Montero-Pons L, Cazorla-Ortiz G, et al. Does Maternal Diet Vary During the Postpartum Period According to Infant Feeding Type? The Observational Study GREEN MOTHER. Nutrients. 2025; 17(7):1136. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17071136

Chicago/Turabian Style

Cabedo-Ferreiro, Rosa, Azahara Reyes-Lacalle, Judit Cos-Busquets, Margalida Colldeforns-Vidal, Liudmila Liutsko, Rosa García-Sierra, Mª-Mercedes Vicente-Hernández, Miriam Gómez-Masvidal, Laura Montero-Pons, Gemma Cazorla-Ortiz, and et al. 2025. "Does Maternal Diet Vary During the Postpartum Period According to Infant Feeding Type? The Observational Study GREEN MOTHER" Nutrients 17, no. 7: 1136. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17071136

APA Style

Cabedo-Ferreiro, R., Reyes-Lacalle, A., Cos-Busquets, J., Colldeforns-Vidal, M., Liutsko, L., García-Sierra, R., Vicente-Hernández, M.-M., Gómez-Masvidal, M., Montero-Pons, L., Cazorla-Ortiz, G., Torán-Monserrat, P., Falguera-Puig, G., & The GREEN MOTHER Group. (2025). Does Maternal Diet Vary During the Postpartum Period According to Infant Feeding Type? The Observational Study GREEN MOTHER. Nutrients, 17(7), 1136. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17071136

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Does Maternal Diet Vary During the Postpartum Period According to Infant Feeding Type? The Observational Study GREEN MOTHER

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