Read the Complete Women's Secret Health Guide covering A-Z topics

Breast Nutrition, Food and Vitamins

Like any other human body organ, the female breast also depends on a proper diet for its development. Food with the right nutrients plays a very important role in lending the desirable shape to the breasts and also keeping them healthier.

Diet for Normal Breast Development

Breast development does not require any special diet; but there are a few things that you must avoid from doing. Keep the following dietary tips in mind for getting shapely breasts.

Breasts already have a lot of fat and adipose in them. Hence, restrict the amount of fats that you take in your diet. Do not use the standard cooking oils, but stick to extra virgin olive oil.
Consume less of animal fat and more of plant fat.
Like all other organs, breasts also need proteins for their development. Hence the diet must contain a fair amount of protein. Consume foods that have lentils, eggs, poultry products and milk. Take a protein rich meal thrice or even four times in a day.
Fiber is important. Hence consume oats, rye, millets and green leafy vegetables. Fiber contains collagen which helps in the easy movement of bowels and expels undigested food quickly and effectively.
Vitamin A is needed for good eyesight and good skeletal and tissue growth. The best source of vitamin A is carrots, in which it is present in the form of beta carotene. You must include this in your diet, especially in the form of salads.
Vitamin A must be supplemented with vitamin C. A minimum amount of vitamin C will help you stress-free (vitamin C can trigger the release of stress-busting hormones). It also helps in the easy absorption of iron and calcium. Include fresh fruits and green leafy vegetables that contain vitamin C in your daily diet.

Diet for Lactating Mothers

The importance of a right diet for lactating mothers can never be emphasized enough. Whatever the mother eats directly influences the milk that is produced and thus enters the body of the baby. In an experiment conducted recently, some mothers were made to eat a lot of garlic and then feed the baby. The milk got garlic flavored and passed into the babies. Contrary to popular beliefs, the babies did not suffer from any digestion problems. Hence, the food that mothers eat enters the bodies of babies, but whether or not they will show indigestion problems in the baby is not yet well studied.

The following steps of precaution must be taken by a lactating mother:-

Lactating mothers should avoid animal food, but not stop it completely. Animal foods can provide a rich reservoir of protein, but at the same time they also have a high fat content. Preferably, white meat such as fish and poultry must be increased in the diet, while red meat such as mutton, beef and pork must be drastically reduced. Good amount of fish will also provide your baby with high iodine amounts which will allow for brain development.
Green leafy vegetables must be an important part of the mother's diet. These foods directly help the stimulation of the mammary glands, thus enhancing the quality and the quantity of milk.
Recent studies have proved that cow's milk is not good for lactating mothers. Cow's milk contains casein, which is a protein that does not get digested easily. Hence it can cause hypersensitivity and allergies in the baby.
Some women try to avoid foods like broccoli, cabbage and beans as they can cause gas problems in the baby. However, this is not necessary as the bacteria causing the gas cannot pass from the mother's milk into the baby's body.
It is not good to drink excessive water while you are lactating. More water can dilute the milk. It is recommended to drink a glass of water or some juice when nursing the baby.
Vegetarian women must supplement their diet with B12 and calcium as these are found to a very less extent in vegan diets.

Diet to Combat Breast Cancer

Though the actual reason for the occurrence of breast cancer is not known, it is strongly indicated that some foods can help in avoiding the cancer. Following are some dietary tips and suggestions to keep breast cancer at bay.

Soy is known to be a very good fighter against breast cancer. This extends to soy products as well such as soy milk, tofu, tempeh and soy nuts. Make sure to include soy and soy products in your daily diet.
Keep the overall fat content in your diet low. Using extra virgin olive oil works.
Fruits must be consumed on a daily basis which will help in the absorption of other substances such as iron and calcium. Fruits contain vitamin C which can also help in healing of wounds (by releasing a cementing material called as collagen) and prevent scurvy, besides working towards fighting breast cancer.
Green leafy vegetables help to provide the much needed fiber. This will facilitate movement of bowels and will reduce the toxic buildup of foods within your body.

For healthy breast development, it is very necessary to avoid alcohol, smoking and any kind of drugs. These factors are known to play havoc with the shape of the breasts, make the milk harmful for the baby and also accelerate breast cancer.