What's on your "labor snack" list?

[jennmiller]

I've had awful food allergies that started way, way before this pregnancy. I've finally found a homeopathic remedy that seems to be helping, though. While it's great news to be able to enter the world of varied foods, I'm not sure about what to eat during labor. With DD#1 I ate anything I could shove in my mouth. Obviously, I can't do that this time. Gluten, dairy, chocolate, corn and potatoes are still off the list. I'm thinking green smoothies and raw coconut yogurt, but I'm not sure. Anyone have suggestions?

[pittnurse08]

Miso soup is wonderful if you're OK with soy. It has great protein and isn't too bad if it comes back up during transition Also hummus and veggies, fruit, crackers, Emergen-C and/or Recharge to drink.

[SwanMom]

where do you get raw coconut yogurt? sounds good.

I've been off of gluten & dairy, and that's hard enough. Almond butter? Nuts? Gluten-free bread? Lots of liquids & fruits/veggies.

[HeatherB]

Watermelon has been on my list in previous pregnancies. It's great for getting extra fluid while eating, and it's yummy and easy to eat and tolerate. Other fruits like grapes have similar benefits.

LOVE Recharge - it's a must for me.

Perhaps gluten-free crackers, pretzels, or other easy nibblers would be good, too.

[Otterella]

I made these popsicles before my daughter was born and they were awesome to have during labor!

1 cup ricotta (you could use tofu, it's about the same texture)
1 cup yogurt (use whatever non-dairy product you would normally sub for yogurt)
2 cups frozen berries (I used blueberries)
1 banana
1 cup pomegranate juice
1-2 scoops protein powder

Blend and either drink as a smoothie or freeze in a popsicle mold. The smoothies don't really "keep" very well, so I always freeze my leftovers immediately.

[laughingfox]

Cantaloupe is the one thing I've had for both my labors. If you like any specific kind of melon, I'd definitely get one or two.
I suggest cutting it up as soon as you feel labor coming, since you won't want to worry about that later.

I drank a lot of V8 fruit/veggie blend juice towards the end when eating didn't appeal to me anymore. Some of the V8 juices might have potato ingredients (?), but I think Naked juices don't.
I'd have preferred Naked juices; I love green machine.

I meant to make a huge list of foods that I never got around to: falafel, hard boiled eggs, rice balls, etc. In the end, I just ate what was around, which luckily included some form of cookie.

[*MamaJen*]

I ate some lentil soup during early labor, but I seriously did not want to eat during active labor. My midwife asked me to eat some toast -- bad idea. It all came up a couple minutes later. I guess it would be one thing if I had been in labor for 24 hours with no food, but I had a relatively short labor.

[ShwarmaQueen]

I had lima beans and cornbread while in early labor. It was perfect for energy and protein. Then once the hard contractions got underway I didn't want to eat anymore...but the Labour-AID (lemon, calcium, salt, honey) got me through until DS was delivered.

[rype]

I'm planning on having chicken broth and raspberry leaf tea popsicles. I don't know what I'll eat if it's long, though. I ate a few crackers or something during my first and puked. Not fun. 2nd labor drank a castor oil milk shake and puked again. That ruined milk shakes. Both times I think I probably birthed maybe four hours after the puke. I'm not sure, but I did not like puking and do not want to do it again. That's why I'm thinking fluids.

[Comtessa]

My go-to foods to gather strength in early labor were:
- beans and rice with tomatoes (thanks Mom!)
- scrambled eggs
- peanut butter sandwiches.

Later in labor I ate a lot of:
- toast with peanut butter (you could do rice cakes with peanut butter to stay gluten-free)
- raspberry leaf tea popsicles (heavily sweetened and spiked with lemon juice)
- plain peach sorbet

My SIL also made me delicious smoothies with the sorbet, bananas, and honey. She probably put yogurt in there, too. You could totally dump a can of coconut milk in there for extra calories -- I think it would be delicious. Sweetened coconut water, lemonade, and white grape juice were all really nice for labor, too.

I puked for hours and hours in labor -- but, then again, I was in transition for something like 10 hours, so there was a lot of puking going on. I was grateful for all the food I ate in earlier labor, though!