In honor of World Breastfeeding Week we wanted to answer a question often asked by pregnant and nursing mothers. “Can I drink Jun while pregnant and breastfeeding?” The short answer, yes!
World Breastfeeding Week
Before we dive in, a little about World Breastfeeding Week (WBW). WBW is a global campaign to raise awareness and galvanize action on themes related to breastfeeding. The 2020 theme of World Breastfeeding Week is to “support breastfeeding for a healthier planet”. In line with this theme, WHOand UNICEF are calling on governments to protect and promote women’s access to skilled breastfeeding counseling, a critical component of breastfeeding support. Learn more about local Asheville resources here.
Jun and Motherhood
As many of you know, I am a nurse, perinatal educator, and lactation consultant so the health of mamas and babies is of utmost importance to me. Parenting is a big responsibility and is approached in many different ways. Pregnancy brings up a lot of questions about lifestyle choices. This is a time when much thought and care goes into making decisions that go beyond the personal. Alcohol use ceases and medication use often dramatically changes. This is also a time when mamas question their dietary choices.
Of course, the choice to drink Jun is a personal one. We wanted to share the facts for mamas looking for information directly from a mother, nurse, and lactation consultant. Remember, the decision is ultimately yours. It is always important to do your research while consulting with your care providers and loved ones. In the end, we always recommend you listen to your intuition and follow your gut!
Fermentation and Alcohol Content
All fermented foods and drinks have trace amounts of alcohol just like ripe fruit, bread, vinegar, and soy sauce. We have tested our Jun with a third party lab and all of our products are considered “non-alcoholic” because they are all below 0.5%. Trace amounts are considered to be less than you would find in a ripe piece of fruit. During fermentation, the yeast from our Jun SCOBY consumes the honey in our tea. This process produces carbon dioxide and alcohol. Then the bacteria from the culture consumes the alcohol-producing healthy acids. Jun is very different from wine or beer because the bacteria and yeast work in harmony to prevent continued alcohol production. The yeast produces the alcohol and the bacteria converts the alcohol into useful beneficial acids for our body. It is a beautiful cycle.
A Healthy Alternative
Many women continue to drink Jun while pregnant and lactating because not only does it taste great, it’s an alternative to alcohol. Jun elevates your mood and helps alleviate many common pregnancy and lactation symptoms. Mamas find Jun’s anti-inflammatory and gut supporting properties helpful.
Mamas are encouraged to include probiotics in their diet. Jun helps not only with that but also with the entire digestive system. It is always better to get your nutrition from a food source whenever possible because your body has an easier time assimilating and digesting. Jun not only has probiotics but also prebiotics, food for the probiotics, which aids your body with faster and better digestion.
Let’s Talk Caffeine
While pregnant and lactating, it is recommended mamas decrease their caffeine consumption. Since Jun is brewed with green tea instead of the black tea traditionally used for Kombucha, it is much lower in caffeine content. Black tea has about 60% more caffeine than green tea. In our fermentation process, even more, caffeine is removed!
At most, Jun has about 5 mg per serving which is less than half a cup of decaf coffee. The transfer of caffeine into breast milk is minimal however the levels tend to peak in milk about 1-2 hours after consuming. The younger the infant the longer it takes for the infant to metabolize. Consuming more than 750 mg of caffeine per day could result in a fussy and wakeful baby. Jun is a great low-caffeine drink option for decreasing your caffeine intake.
You Decide
Pregnancy and lactation are vulnerable times for both mother and baby. Many folks ask about the safety of consuming a raw unpasteurized product. Jun is highly acidic which means the pH is very low. Harmful bacteria such as E.Coli and salmonella can’t survive in a highly acidic environment so it is very different from consuming raw cheese, for example, which is not recommended while pregnant.
To conclude, we would like to encourage you to find your way to peace and balance as you discover what is right for you. Congratulations on your precious gift. We wish you many blessings on your journey together!
If you are planning an Asheville adventure, remember Shanti Elixirs can be found at various Asheville hot spots listed here.