Anyone heard of the Brewer Diet?

[green_momma2007]

I found it online and it seems like Atkins diet but for pregnant ladies. It seems like one would gain a lot of weight eating everything on there. Has anybody had any experience with it?

[bluepetals]

I was looking at this the other day, I have heard of it before and thought I'd check it out. I thought 4 glasses of milk a day sounded like a lot. But I am not sure if you'd gain a ton on it...it is pretty strict on carbs and is all good for you food. My brain is a weight watcher points computer...if I ate everything on the daily list, it would be about 32 points (assuming I ate lean meat and Omega margarine instead of butter). That is roughly 1600 calories, give or take a hundred or two. Add in the other stuff he recommends on a weekly basis and you'd probably be taking in around 1800 or so a day.

That said, when I was interviewing a midwife the other day she said to avoid liver. I found this interesting because Brewer says eat it once a week if you like it. Apparently liver is very high in vitamin A, which can cause defects in too-high amounts. So that's why the midwife says to avoid.

[kwilki8]

I've been looking at this too, because I had pre-eclampsia in my first pregnancy and my biggest fear is going through that again. I don't know if I'm completely sold on it (and there's no way I will eat liver!), but I'd be interested to know what others think about it.

[Molliejo]

I did a variation of the Brewer diet during my last pregnancy and it kept me really healthy. I just tried to eat 80-100 grams of protein a day with lots of vegetables and fruits. Believe it or not, I really didn't gain that much weight on it. It made me feel really good, or as good as a pregnant woman can feel, anyway. :lol

It's when I started eating ice cream and candy every night that I started gaining weight. :bag:

[Adele_Mommy]

My midwife recommended this diet with a few adaptations when I was pregnant and it worked really well for me. I also did not eat liver and I did not eat as many eggs as they say, but I did try to eat at least one egg a day. I gained 40 lbs during my pregnancy and a little bit of that was because I started "cheating" the last month and eating sweets. The diet made a lot of sense to me intuitively because the only food I ever craved while pregnant was meat, and I did not get cravings when I was getting as much protein as the diet recommends.

[philomom]

I gained only 20 lbs on this diet all three times. My babies weighed just under 7 pounds and I had no complications at all. Love it.

[alegna]

I think, like so many things, there is a core of good advice here. I think that enough protein is very important in pregnancy.

I'm not one for counting and limiting, personally, though.

-Angela

[symesa]

I just asked another MDC mama friend of mine about her diet during pregnancy. She told me to check out the Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way book for good info on pregnancy dietary needs. I've got it on hold at the library now.

I really want to be more cognizant of what I eat this time around. I worked my butt off (literally) to lose 40 pounds on WW (their fantastic Core program) this past year and I want to keep up my healthy eating. But...I also know I need to increase my protein and probably reduce my sugar (even though I don't eat any un-refined sugar at this point).

[Taedareth]

I'm not one for counting and limiting, personally, though. -Angela



:yeah: I follow a Traditional Foods diet containing plenty of protein from cheese and meat; healthful fats like virgin coconut oil, organic tallow, butter and olive oil; fresh fruits and vegetables; fermented condiments and organic raw milk and homemade milk kefir/water kefir/kombucha for the live enzymes. No refined sugars (except xylitol, I guess that's highly refined but it's low glycemic index) and no flour/wheat (DH is gluten-intolerant anyway). I do eat sprouted grains like quinoa and millet. I also supplement with a completely synthetic-vitamin-free cod liver oil (Blue Ice brand).

I am now the skinniest I've ever been since I was a teenager. In fact, I'm down to what I weighed as a sophomore in high school - 127 lbs / dress size 8. I don't work out currently, but I do take longish walks a few days a week while babywearing my toddler. :lol I can trust my body to tell me when I've had enough, and what kinds of foods would agree with me at any given time. I'm well-nourished and energetic. I love TF! :jumpers:

[kristenok18]

I just asked another MDC mama friend of mine about her diet during pregnancy. She told me to check out the Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way book for good info on pregnancy dietary needs. I've got it on hold at the library now.

In my Bradley classes when I was pg with ds waaaaay back when ('02), we were given nutrition sheets that were from the Brewer diet. :)

[LaffNowCryLater]

I'd be too paranoid about consuming that many eggs (and dairy) a day and sensitizing the baby to an allergy.

[dis]

Based on not much but my own intuition and several years spent as a pretty hardcore weightlifter, I think getting enough protein is really, really important. I personally try and get lots of lean protein, fruits & veggies, good fats, and I restrict my intake of grain products to stuff that's high in fibre. I find eating this way I naturally gravitate to smaller portions and my sweet tooth rarely kicks in with bad cravings.

I'll have to wait and see what happens if/when the morning sickness really kicks in, though. Last pregnancy I was throwing up so much I basically had to eat anything that sounded like there was a possibility of it staying down, so I ate a LOT of junk food. Really hoping that doesn't happen this time...

[alegna]

I'd be too paranoid about consuming that many eggs (and dairy) a day and sensitizing the baby to an allergy.

I've not read any reliable research to that effect.

-Angela

[Ammaarah]

I think I will try to follow the Brewer Diet if I get pregnant again. I had a hard time getting enough protein due to morning sickness and I did end up with blood pressure issues, specifically rising BP starting in the first trimester and a big scary upswing at the end of pregnancy. They diagnosed me with pre-eclampsia although the BP was the only pre-e symptom I had. At any rate, it made for an overly monitored and medicalized pregnancy and I want to avoid that next time around and just enjoy being pregnant.

[Adele_Mommy]

I'd be too paranoid about consuming that many eggs (and dairy) a day and sensitizing the baby to an allergy.

FWIW I ate quite a bit of eggs and dairy the entire time I was pregnant and breastfeeding and my daughter has no food allergies or sensitivities at all.

[LaffNowCryLater]

Of course its not something that will happen DEFINITELY :lol

2 eggs a day as a minimum seems like a lot to me, but I don't eat eggs really (unless I bake with them or something).