Pumpkin, Flax and Chia Oatmeal

So I'm kind of a breastmilk snob.

And I mean that in the nicest of ways.  See I totally share. Love to breastfeed. Love to pump.  Love to learn about homeopathic uses of breastmilk.  Bought a deep freezer.  But seriously, I will do anything to maintain and boost my breastmilk supply.

So I have become fanatical, which I know most of my breastfeeding mom friends can relate to.  Drinking the tea, drink obscene amounts of water, taking the fenugreek.  I've been trying to sprinkle brewers yeast and nutritional yeast on what I can.  However, I had not yet added oats to my regimen.

I've never been a cereal or oatmeal girl, really, because I am not a fan of the ingredients, and most oatmeal products have gluten.  However, I really wanted to try something new for breakfast that I could get some flax into that would promote my breastmilk supply.  I found a great product by Udi's that is gluten free steel cut oats with currants, flax, and chia, and I have fallen in love!  Takes 15 minutes to prep in the morning, but I find it to be very filling and hearty.  You can skip buying the Udi's product too and buy all the ingredients separately.  

How do oats and flax support lactation?  As you can recall from my Healthy Lactation Cookie recipe, flaxseed is a galactogogue, known to support healthy lactation.  In addition, flaxseed has a great amount of fiber and omega 3s.  Oatmeal, on the other hand, is packed with iron and fiber, which nursing moms need to promote supply.  Interestingly, your breastmilk is largely influenced by your iron levels postpartum, so getting lots of foods rich in iron, and possibly even taking an iron supplement, could be helpful in boosting milk supply.

I hope you enjoy this recipe.  It was nice and warm and made my morning.  The pumpkin adds a nice array of antioxidants, Vitamin C, Vitamin A and fiber.  Enjoy!

Pumpkin, Flax and Chia Oatmeal

1/4 cup gluten free steel cut oats

1 tablespoon flax

1 tsp chia seeds

1 tbsp currants

1/2 cup canned organic pumpkin

1 tsp cinnamon

Cook oats as instructed on packaging on stovetop with water.  Then add all the other remaining ingredients and stir.  Wait 5 minutes too cool, and serve warm. 

Blessings, 

Lindsay