Tell me about the Brewer's Diet

[Ambivalent Dreams]

Isn't this the pregnancy diet that is advocated in Bradley classes? Have you used it? What are your experiences?

TIA!

[umsami]

I know a few Moms who have used it. From what I remember, it's supposed to help prevent pre-eclampsia.

Here's an old thread on it.
http://www.mothering.com/discussions.../t-500989.html

[UmmAbduRahman]

Yes, it was developed by Dr. Tom Brewer.

Basically it consists of a balanced diet including 80-100 grams of protein a day and foods that provide sufficient calcium, vitamins & mineals, salting to taste and drinking to thirst.

It doesn't focus on the amount of pounds to gain, but the quality of food to eat, avoiding junk food as much as possible.

I like it!

[ckumelos]

I did not like it. My midwife asked me to follow it, but it just wasn't my taste.

There is too much milk/cheese/eggs.

I believe the diet was developed by Dr. Brewer to help lower income women get a high protein/good nutrition diet. Dr. Brewer worked with many very poverty stricken women who had very little knowledge of nutrition, and he was trying to make something simple that was relatively inexpensive.

[MyZymurgy]

So dietary protein must not have anything to do with protein in the urine, right? It just seems like if someone is predisposed to pre-e, a high protein diet (which seems like it would give more protein for the already stressed kidneys to filter out) is a bad idea. Couldn't such a diet yield higher protein outputs on 24-hour urines?

I'm worried about pre-e this time around. I'm about 25 weeks, have PIH right now with very very high bps (160/100 average), had pre-e and HELLP last pregnancy, and 218 on my previous 24 hour urine... so no pre-e yet (knock on wood) just PIH.

Is the brewer diet something I should consider ... or would a dietary increase in protein translate to more stress on the kidneys and more protein in the urine?

(PS- I imagine this diet needed to be started pre-conception ideally, right?)

Thanks for any insights... glad this topic came up!

[Bokonon]

Originally Posted by MyZymurgy

So dietary protein must not have anything to do with protein in the urine, right? It just seems like if someone is predisposed to pre-e, a high protein diet (which seems like it would give more protein for the already stressed kidneys to filter out) is a bad idea. Couldn't such a diet yield higher protein outputs on 24-hour urines?

I'm worried about pre-e this time around. I'm about 25 weeks, have PIH right now with very very high bps (160/100 average), had pre-e and HELLP last pregnancy, and 218 on my previous 24 hour urine... so no pre-e yet (knock on wood) just PIH.

Is the brewer diet something I should consider ... or would a dietary increase in protein translate to more stress on the kidneys and more protein in the urine?

(PS- I imagine this diet needed to be started pre-conception ideally, right?)

Thanks for any insights... glad this topic came up!

The Brewer Diet is pretty widely frowned upon by preeclampsia researchers. There are several members of the Preeclampsia Foundation forums that followed the Brewer Diet to the letter from preconception and still developed severe preeclampsia and/or HELLP.

If your kidneys are already compromised, then yes, adding that excessive amount of protein will compromise them further (though I don't know if it translates directly into proteinuria or if it's a more gradual stressor).

I hope you are able to get full-term with this pregnancy and keep the PIH at bay (your BPs freak me out!). I had severe pre-e with both my pregnancies and delivered at 32 and 34 weeks.

http://www.preeclampsia.org/forum/to...s=,brewer,diet

[Realrellim]

Originally Posted by Bokonon

The Brewer Diet is pretty widely frowned upon by preeclampsia researchers. There are several members of the Preeclampsia Foundation forums that followed the Brewer Diet to the letter from preconception and still developed severe preeclampsia and/or HELLP.

If your kidneys are already compromised, then yes, adding that excessive amount of protein will compromise them further (though I don't know if it translates directly into proteinuria or if it's a more gradual stressor).

I hope you are able to get full-term with this pregnancy and keep the PIH at bay (your BPs freak me out!). I had severe pre-e with both my pregnancies and delivered at 32 and 34 weeks.

http://www.preeclampsia.org/forum/to...s=,brewer,diet

I had DH look up some medical studies to see about the Brewer's diet, and there weren't any to support it, but some that suggested it could have a negative effect. The pre-e forums have some nice discussions about it there.

[umsami]

The few posts made me wonder... and as I used to do a lot of medical research (and still sometimes do).... I checked out pub-med...

You might want to have your Vit D levels checked... and consider supplementing. A good portion of women are low and don't know it... and it could impact pre-e...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1...m&ordinalpos=3

Another study, mentioned a diet high in fruits, veggies, and vegetable oils leading to reduced risk...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19369368?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez. Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_SingleItemSupl.P ubmed_Discovery_RA&linkpos=1&log$=relatedarticles& logdbfrom=pubmed

Good luck, Mama.

[laughingfox]

I was reading some breakdowns of the Brewer's Diet today.
It seems like it could be adapted to be lighter on the cholesterol, saturated fat, and all that. In the breakdown I was looking at (sorry, lost the link!), beans and peanut butter could be eaten as protein sources to cut out meat + eggs, almonds or tofu could be used for calcium foods to cut out whole milk, avocado or vegetable oils could be used as healthy fats instead of butter, etc.
Still, it seems a bit excessive and outdated. 3000 daily calories is certainly more than I need, and liver is now on the no-no list for pregnant women.

Some of the principles are worth following, but it's pretty common sense advice you could get anywhere- eat whole foods, eat whole grains, eat your fruits and veggies, watch your vitamin and mineral intake, make sure you're not depriving yourself, etc.

[tngirl11]

I learned about the Brewer diet in my first pg. My Bradley teacher really convinced me about the importance of protein, especially since I was expecting twins. I had gestational diabetes, so I had to go to a diabetic nutrition counselor, who gave me a very different diet to follow(limited calories, limited proteins and fats). I tried that diet for a few days, but it sent my blood sugar skyrocketing and made me feel awful, so I went right back to the Brewer diet (much to her chagrin!) I never again had a single high blood sugar reading after that or a single high blood pressure reading. I was diabetic in my second pg too and followed the diet again with great success. I guess I'm basically following it now too, although it has pretty much become the way that I eat most of the time anyway--whole, traditional foods, lots of protein, fruits and veggies, avoiding low-fat products, processed food and refined carbs. You don't have to follow everything to the letter, but the book is a really good resource, and the diet is a great place to start.
I think the main point is that an awful lot of women, probably even more so today, get really afraid of gaining too much weight or not being able to lose after the baby is born, so they avoid good foods that their bodies really need and don't realize that they need to gain a decent amount of weight to grow a really healthy baby. You also need to store at least some fat during pg in order to be able to have a good milk supply afterward.

[Lauren31]

Originally Posted by laughingfox

liver is now on the no-no list for pregnant women.
.

I disagree. Some doctors, at least here in Europe, still recommend it. The problem is if you eat too much liver you can get an overdose of Vit A.

[CorasMama]

isn't the problem with liver also the toxins?