Mother Nurture lactation coffee and choco mixes officially launches in PH

I first encountered Mother Nurture in 2014, when I was still pregnant with my second son. Someone posted about it on a breastfeeding group on Facebook and I read some good feedback, so I promised myself to try it once I begin my exclusive breastfeeding journey.

Almost five years later, my son had already weaned himself from boob milk, but I would still recommend Mother Nurture to friends who are also into breastfeeding.

Mother Nurture is a locally made lactation mix born out of the love, care, and months of research and hardwork of a Filipina mom. It has coffee and chocolate variants, and contains seven all-natural ingredients that are known to be galactagogues or breastmilk production boosters.

Lan San Juan-Perez, the superwomom behind this wonderful product, recently shared some good news about her product.

After five years of online entrepreneurship, Mother Nurture is now officially launching its products with a seal of approval from the FDA (Food and Drugs Administration).

The Mother Nurture 7-in-1 Chocomix and Coffeemix are packed with galactagogues such as calcium lactate, malunggay powder, and ashitaba. It also has gotu kola, an herb that helps relieve mental fatigue and boost blood circulation. Both products also use Stevia as a sweetener, which is a healthy sugar substitute that helps in inslin secretion and is a known antioxidant.

These unique ingredients make Mother Nurture products not only safe for for pregnant and breastfeeding moms, but also for diabetics, hypertensive, and acidic individuals. Even kids can enjoy the Chocomix variant, while those who have dietary restrictions can try the Coffeemix as it is Halal certified.

“Breastmilk is the perfect food to give to a infant. It has all the necessary nutrients that they need for immunity and to protect them from common infections. Breastfed babies are shown to have higher IQ, language ability, visual-motor abilities, emotional, and intellectual developments. All these things can benefit children later in life,” says Lan.

Mother Nurture’s Coffeemix and Chocomix are both available in packs of eight 21-gram sachets for only P140.00.

To order, visit mothernurtureph.com.

You may also join the first-ever Mommy’s Day Out Facebook giveaway for a chance to win a special Mother Nurture gift pack.

9 Lessons to learn from the Bea-Gerald-Julia controversy

The internet is currently on fire with posts and reactions about the issue surrounding actors Bea Alonzo, Gerald Anderson, and Julia Barretto.

(If you’ve been living under a rock and need the full back story, check out PEP.ph for the most accurate and latest info.)

So here’s my take on the Bea-Gerald-Julia brouhaha: Whatever happened to being a decent human being?

Last I checked, we are human beings, not animals. Within our species, we have unwritten rules we all need to live by in order to keep this world from falling into chaos.

This love triangle story has released a lot of negativity, and by the looks of it, there’s still a long way to go before this reaches a happy ending for all involved.

But moving forward, I want to focus on the lessons that this issue can teach us.

Perhaps by listing some of them down, we can also be reminded that decency and respect do not only apply to celebrities whose lives have become public property, but also in our own lives and relationships.

Lessons

1. Learn to be content with what you have.

2. Not everything that glitters is gold. Resist temptations and always choose what’s right.

3. In a relationship, always respect your partner and the bond you share together. Honor your promise of love and loyalty at all times.

4. Do not do things that would make your partner question your love and loyalty.

5. If a problem arises in your relationship, fix it together with your partner. You may ask for guidance from people you know would know better, but never seek solace in the arms of another.

6. Open your eyes to your own faults, and listen well to your partner’s woes.

7. A relationship is not a contest between who’s right and who’s wrong. It’s a beautiful dance of forgiveness, understanding, compromise, and acceptance.

8. If you are no longer happy in your relationship, have the decency to break it with your partner. It will hurt, but it’s better to get wounded with honesty than to get stabbed in the back with lies.

9. Respect yourself by respecting other people’s relationships.

What about you, what has this controversy taught you?

Remembering my breastfeeding journey

Whenever I look at my kids and see how much they’ve grown, I couldn’t help but shed a little tear when I remember how small and pure and helpless they used to be.

I remember holding them in my arms, nursing them to sleep, and breastfeeding them whenever needed.

Like most first-time moms, my breastfeeding journey didn’t come so easy with my first child.

I was completely in pain, nauseous, and had recurring fever throughout my first two post-partum weeks. My breasts were so enlarged, hard as rocks, and so excruciatingly sensitive that I could barely even carry my baby for so long. It was absolute torture, I thought my body would just give up and die.

When the fever finally subsided and my CS wound started to heal, I was able to breastfeed my boy, finally, thanks to his pediatrician’s guidance.

I didn’t know better then, so I was mixed feeding my son thinking he wasn’t getting satisfied with my milk. I was able to mix-feed him only for six months.

When I got pregnant with my second child, I was more determined to breastfeed him exclusively, having learned about techniques to get your milkflow going.

From day one, my second son was breastfed exclusively until he started eating soft solids at around eight months old. We ended our breastfeeding journey just a few weeks before he turned four.

Suffice to say, I miss my breastfeeding days especially during this Breastfeeding Month.

I absolutely miss the quiet bonding moments, watching your child literally feed out of your chest and out of your heart.

I also enjoyed the cuddles that came with breastfeeding and catching that innocent toothless smile even though it’s just baby reflex.

The convenience of not having to get up in the middle of the night just to mix formula was a gift from heaven. Not to mention the savings I get from not having to buy a P500-can of milk every week.

At one point, my milk supply had become so stable that I had an entire compartment in our freezer just for my expressed milk. I even had the chance to donate a few bags to a newborn baby who lost her mom to childbirth. That felt really good.

Ah, if only I could turn back time!

This August–Breastfeeding Month–I want to blow a sweet virtual kiss to all the mothers who pulled through all the hardships of breastfeeding. The same goes for moms who didn’t last as long (or simply couldn’t) but nonetheless tried.

Happy Breastfeeding Month to all of us!