How Hydration Powders Help Bridge the Mum Nutrition Gaps

The six-week postpartum checkup falls short in many ways, but checking a new mum is getting all the nutrients she needs to function, is one of them. “It often covers contraception and recovery, but not always a comprehensive blood screening to look at nutrient replenishment,” says Catherine Ireland, Certified Prenatal Dietitian and developer of KICBump Hydration. “In this way, many of my clients come to their first postpartum check-in with me deficient in iron and B12, while also not getting enough choline, DHA, and iodine from their diet.”

In Australia, pregnant women are not meeting the recommended daily servings of all five food groups. Further, many women fall short on iron, DHA, iodine, choline and vitamin D.

Electrolyte drinks are used to replace fluids and salts when in people experiencing dehydration. They work because electrolytes are essential minerals that carry an electrical charge when they dissolve in fluid. These include sodium, potassium, magnesium, chloride, and calcium. “The electrical charge helps move fluid in and out of our cells, sends nerve signals, and helps our muscles contract, including our heart,” says Ireland. But not all electrolytes are made the same.

KICBump Hydration is a powder designed to make up the nutritional difference, specifically experienced by pregnant and new mums. “It assists in meeting the increased fluid demands of pregnancy and breastfeeding by providing an alternative to common beverages — such as plain water, milk, and coconut water etc. — and bridge the gap of what women are not getting enough of from food,” says Ireland. “It’s especially helpful for women experiencing pregnancy symptoms such as nausea or taste alterations — like that metallic taste you can get.”

Once you’re out of the pregnancy, there’s the physiological toll of breastfeeding. “Exclusive breastfeeding draws heavily on maternal calcium and vitamin D stores,” says Ireland. “So if women have limited or excluded dairy (Vegans, CMPI/CMPA) it can be really hard to meet these nutrients from diet alone.”

In developing KICBump Hydration, Ireland sought to develop a safe and effective tool to help women achieve the increased fluid and nutrient demands of pregnancy and postpartum (including breastfeeding). “As we know women struggle to meet them during this vulnerable and transformational season in their life.”

For Ireland, there were three key inclusions that make KICBump different to other hydration powders. She explains them below:

Potassium-forward formula

For pregnancy, postpartum, and breastfeeding, we still chose a potassium-forward formula; however, we lowered the ratio to account for the increased fluid balance demands (2.3L fluid during pregnancy, 2.6L during lactation) and losses during pregnancy (vomiting) and postpartum/breastfeeding (postpartum sweats, diarrhoea). Getting enough potassium AND sodium is critical to achieve fluid balance, but most adults overconsume sodium in their diets, and as healthy kidneys easily excrete excess potassium.

Choline Bitartrate

Around 3 in 4 pregnant women are not meeting their base choline requirements, and prenatals contain little to none. Research is also showing that choline requirements may need to double from the third trimester to support the foetal stress response and cognitive performance later in life.

Vitamin D3

Vitamin D deficiency is common in Australia. Up to 55% of Australian women experience it during pregnancy. Breastmilk vitamin D levels depend entirely on maternal stores, and research shows that intake needs to be quite high for sufficient Vitamin D to pass through to your baby. This can be hard to achieve through diet alone. Additionally, Australia has the highest rate of melanoma in the world. Therefore, relying on diet and supplements for adequate vitamin D is a sun safe option.

If you’re wondering if you could benefit from KICBump, Ireland explains, “We get most of our electrolytes from food and lose them through sweat, vomit, diarrhoea, and breastmilk. So if you're struggling to eat enough, drink enough fluid, or are experiencing any of those symptoms, you may be lacking some essential electrolytes,” says Ireland. Some signs may include headaches, fatigue, feeling light-headed, and dark-coloured urine (if not consuming B vitamins), and muscle cramps, constipation, and feeling thirsty constantly. If you want further investigation into your symptoms, Ireland recommends seeing a specialist. “An Accredited Practising Dietitian can work out if you're lacking in choline through a dietary assessment, and your vitamin D can be assessed via a blood test.”