Becoming a parent can be both daunting and an out-of-this world experience. For those of us who have experienced late-stage pregnancy, childbirth, early infant rearing and all its glories, will surely have a story or ten to tell. But no matter what, parenting remains ever the more fulfilling part of a complete life. For new moms, in particular, it’s important to pay attention to everything from diet to post-delivery wound care and getting enough rest to recover.

The confinement stage (for those who practice it) up to a year post-childbirth requires a lot of adjusting. Nutrition plays a huge part in recovery as well as keeping up energy and staying healthy for both mum and baby, especially if breastfeeding.

But as many new parents have come to learn, baby-caring is a rather time-consuming activity in itself. When compounded with chores, self-care, follow-up appointments with your doctor, and going back to work after maternity leave, sometimes there’s just not enough hours in the day to spare for meal prep and researching nutritional values of food items to help you decide what to eat.

So for any new mum (or dad!) who’d like to eat healthy while busy with new parenthood, GemSpot is here to help! Besides the wide array of healthy meal options available on our app, you even get the convenience of your meals being delivered to you. Never before have postpartum meals and nutrition been this convenient!

Vegetable Soup

There is a common myth that new mothers are not to eat vegetables during confinement, but this is actually incorrect. While many Asian cultures perceive some fruits and vegetables to be ‘cold’ foods, it is important that new mums consume plenty of fibre, as constipation can be a common occurrence post-delivery (especially if recovering from a C-section). The key is to serve your vegetables warm, such as in a soup or prepared with other warming ingredients such as ginger or sesame oil, and you will be able to reap both the nutritional and fibre benefits of including roughage into your diet, leaving you feeling healthy and energetic enough to look after your baby.

Pork Noodle

In Chinese confinement, it is believed that foods rich in iron will help you recover from the blood loss that a new mum would have experienced in delivery. While fatty pork dishes ought to be avoided, healthy preparations of pork dishes – for example lean cuts of meat served in a warm soup – can be very beneficial to your postpartum health, and is believed to aid wound recovery and improve appetite (so you can keep your strength up!). Plus, healthy servings of pork can offer nutrients such as zinc, protein and vitamins B6 and B12.

Bonus: By consuming soupy foods along with your other regular liquid consumptions, you’ll also be upping your daily hydration. Other post-pregnancy safe drinks include warm tea and warm milk.

Ginger Onion Fish Fillet

Heralded across the Asian cultures for its warming and “buang angin” properties, ginger is a star ingredient to have in your postpartum diet.

Ginger is categorised as a safe and natural galactagogue, meaning a food that promotes lactation, helping mums improve breast milk production without any side effects. And on top of that, ginger provides a host of other benefits including being an antibacterial (keeps your mouth healthy), calming nausea, debloating, and helping to stabilise your blood sugar and sugar cravings.

Seared Norwegian Salmon

As one of the healthiest sources of protein, fish has all kinds of benefits for both new mums and the babies they are breastfeeding. Fatty fishes such as salmon pack quite the nutritional punch, as they offer omega-3 fatty acids and DHA that are crucial to the development of a baby’s nervous system.

And while it should be consumed in moderation (due to mercury concerns in fish), studies suggest salmon may even elevate your mood, helping mums avoid postpartum depression.

Ready to order yourself a yummy-mummy nutritious meal? Let us take care of your meals for you as you keep yourself busy with baby, by offering you a whole RM6 OFF your delivery fee (with a minimum spend of RM30) all throughout the month of August!

Just a few taps and your meal is on its way, a perfect solution for the busy parent!