Post pregnancy Story Ep4 Post Natal Hair Loss

Postpartum Hair Loss 

This is what happen every single time I combed my hair. I was so scare that I stop combing my hair and to the extend I dread of washing my hair! I feel like I am under going chemo looking at the rate my hair is falling!

My first baby was not this bad and people tell me normally second baby hair loss will be worse. But really? This bad?

Well, let go about why this happen? It is said that during our pregnancy, we do not lose hair or so called our hair was “freezed” therefore, our “freezed” hair fall out post pregnancy (which is supposed to fall during our pregnancy?).

I tried all mean of ways to keep myself from being bald – still trying hard now :(

What I do:

• Let you hair go loose

I no longer tie my hair now as I notice my hair falls more when I untie them. Thus, I just let them go loose.

• Cut your hair short

Longer hair = more weight = prone to lose more hair. I cut my hair short after my confinement (my hair is in fact longer during my confinement – funny kan?)

• Hair care product

You won’t believe how many type of shampoo I tried.

This is not all. I have tried I think almost 10 different brands. So far Nioxin is the best. I prevent my hair from falling that much. Pantene is MYR12.90, BC is MYR35, Avalon is MYR 28, Nioxin is MYR100. Well, if you compute according to MYR/ml vs value for money, I would say Nioxin. Nioxin give me almost immediate result where I can visibly see less hair fall out. Also, the smell is much better than others. It give a faint mint smell which is quite good actually.

I also tried this. MYR 60. It helps so far. This is my first try for hair toner.

• Maintain good diet

I tried USANA multivitamin and still taking them. They consist Iron which apparently helps to prevent hair loss.

Still having bad hair fall experience now so I plan to try out a few more other brand that have good reviews. Keep in view these few products.

Verdict:

My personal experience is to take folic acid and multi vitamin. Also, so far Nioxin and the Optimax hair toner helps me a lot. If you have good tips do share with me :)

You can purchase shampoo from iHerbs too

Love, Hot MaMa

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Post Pregnancy Story Ep3 Post Natal Supplement Pregnant or Lactating Mum

Supplement for Post Natal Mummy

Eat healthy and feed healthy

The kiasu-ness me,

always survey, google and ask around before deciding.

My first pregnancy, I was with Dr Delaila, who was a very very nice, chirp and patient gynae. She prescribed the essential supplement to me which is required for every pregnant woman. I was taking calcium, fish oil and multivit till i deliver.

For my whole 8 months of breast feeding (6 months of exclusive pump), I did not take any supplement as my gynae said that so long i maintaing a good diet then it should be fine.

Then come my second pregnancy, I was with Dr Tang Boon Nee as Dr Delaila was no longer practicing. Dr Tang is very much different from Dr Delaila. She encourage very much on taking necessary supplements.

How i started,

come in touch with different supplement is from my group of friends.

Don’t be surprise when you hear numerous brand pops up which I even know until I start asking!

Nutrilite, Herbalife Nu Skin, USANA, Shaklee One-a-day, GNC, centrum, E-Excel, Nature Made and all the way to Blackmore.

Most of the them introduced me to E-excel, GNC and Nutrilite. Then after my friend, mei kee who is taking USANA supplement since her early pregnancy strongly “promote” USANA (she was then already a member). All right. Me being a skeptical person always have this thing with MLM products (all the products mention above are MLM). But no harm trying, I was thinking.

Focusing the supplement I need that I blogged, I would share my review as follows :)

First, Calcium!!

  

From left to right, Nutrilite USANA & GNC

Each tablet of Nutrilite consist of:

• Calcium: 200 mg
• Magnesium: 66.7mg
• Vit D: 200IU
• Zinc: 5mg

Each tablet of USANA consist of:

• Calcium: 200 mg
• Magnesium: 100mg
• Vit D: 100IU

Each tablet of GNC consist of:

• Calcium: 600 mg
• Magnesium: 300mg
• Vit D: 400IU

My earlier post shared about the required daily intake as follows:

• Calcium: 1000mg
• Magnesium: 350mg
• Vit D: 200 IU
• Zinc 11mg

My thought?

I spoke to each sales consultant and understand that

• the best ratio of calcium absorption is to take with magnesium with the ration of 2:1 or 3:1
• calcium chelate is better than calcium citrate as it can be easily absorb and cause little or no gastrointestinal
• calcium carbonate is the worst! sadly, most of the supplement do use this as the ingredient

Looking at this, USANA is better as

• it has the best calcium, magnesium ratio compared to GNC and Nutrilite
• i won’t overdose myself with the magnesium and Vit D if i take USANA 5 tablets or 1000mg of calcium compared to  GNC 2 tablets or 1200mg of calcium (bear in mind we need only 1000mg) where USANA 1000mg of calcium equal to 500mg of mag and 500IU of Vit D but GNC 1000mg of calcium equal to 700mg of mag and 800IU of Vit D!!

The only con about taking USANA is, it is super expensive as compared to other GNC and Nutrilite. Per tablet USANA cost RM0.60, GNC cost RM0.40 while Nutrilite cost RM0.30 (all price from Amazon.com). Not to mention USANA need to consume 5 tablets which is RM3.50/day, Nurilite also 5 tablets but only RM1.50/day,  GNC only 2 tablets at RM0.80/day to obtain the necessary calcium dosage.

What’s your verdict?

Well, i can say if you are USANA member then it is worth taking it or else, GNC is a much economical choice.

Second, Vit D!!

 Well, since calcium already contain the necessary Vit D, it should be fine it is.

Third, Fish Oil!!

For fish oil, the ingredient mainly are EPA and DHA

Each tablet of Nutrilite consist of:

• EPA: 1200mg
• DHA: 600mg

Each tablet of USANA consist of:

• Fish Oil: 1000mg
• EPA: 290mg
• DHA: 235mg

Each tablet of GNC consist of:

• Fish Oil:1500mg
• EPA: 540mg
• DHA: 360mg

There are nothing much to compare about fish oil in terms of ingredient as there is no overdose clinically proven result. So it is the more you take the better it is?

No.

I research and found out that fish oil are NOT all the same, read here.

Thus, how to choose the best? Purity is the criteria. Tips? Put your fish oil in the freezer and see whether it will be frozen. If it is not, then higher the purity is.

Tried a few different brand and notice Nutrilite and GNC do become frozen (not fully) and USANA is NOT frozen.

What’s your verdict?

My thought? USANA it is, despite it is more expensive!

Nutrilite RM1.50/capsule, USANA RM1.60/capsule, GNC RM1.20/capsule

 Sharing of my result,

I do see different between my breast milk for taking supplement and without, read it at my blog!

* All the ingredients are obtained from the respective website as at 26 July 2014 and all above is solely my own sharing and research. It does not represent any of the companies or do not constitute ads or whatsoever.

Post Pregnancy Story Ep2 Post Natal Supplement Lactating Woman

The first thing –

that come to my mind when talking about healthy pregnancy is supplement! Reason being I am a full time working mum and have my food mostly outside thus, supplement is very very important for me.

I started to google and try to find out more about how much and type of supplements does a pregnant woman. Then I realized there are 4 supplements that I must take (vary from individual) and also as recommended here. These are calcium, vitamin D (i took multivit), folic acid and fish oil.

Calcium

Required: 1000mg / day

Dosage: Absorb only 500mg per intake

Benefit: Grows strong bones and teeth, healthy nerves, heart, and muscles; develops heart rhythm and blood clotting

Overdose: Constipate, kidney stone

Supplemental calcium comes in different forms, most commonly calcium citrate and calcium carbonate. Calcium citrate is the type most easily absorbed by the body.

Calcium carbonate provides the most calcium, but requires extra stomach acid to help dissolve it, so it’s best taken with a meal. (Because calcium citrate doesn’t require stomach acid for absorption, it can be taken between meals and is a good choice for those taking heartburn medication that reduces stomach acid.)

An adequate intake of vitamin D is necessary for your body to absorb calcium.

According to Bruce Hollis, professor of pediatrics at the Medical University of South Carolina,

“I recommend that pregnant women take a supplement of 4,000 IU of vitamin D a day. And I recommend that lactating women take a supplement of 6,000 IU daily,”

Vitamin D (Multivit)

Required: 500mcg or more / day

Dosage: N/A

Benefit: Helps build bones and teeth

Vitamin D of 500mcg can be easily obtained from my daily meal as i love milk (1 cup fortified skim milk: 98 IU), salmon (3.5 ounces salmon, cooked: 360 IU)and egg (1 egg yolk: 20 IU) much! Fish liver oil, fatty fish, and fortified milk, egg, and cereal products all contain vitamin D. Be sure to check food labels: Some eggs, cheeses, yogurts, and cereals are fortified while others aren’t.

If you’re lacking vitamin D during pregnancy, your baby may be short on the vitamin at birth. This can put her at risk for rickets (which can lead to fractures and deformity), abnormal bone growth, and delayed physical development. A deficiency of vitamin D has also been linked to a greater risk of pregnancy complications, including preeclampsia, and a higher likelihood of an expectant mom needing a c-section.

Folic acid

Required: 400mcg / day

Dosage: A400mcg highly importance for early pregnancy especially if you have talassemia like me

Benefit: Helps prevent neural tube defects; may reduce risk of other birth defects; critical for DNA production (building block of cells)

Overdose: Don’t take more than 1,000 mcg per day of folic acid unless your healthcare provider advises you to. This is particularly important if you are a vegan. Vegans are at risk of being deficient in vitamin B12 and taking too much folic acid would make it hard to diagnose that deficiency.

Folic acid able to make normal red blood cells and prevent a type of anemia. Folic acid is also essential for the production, repair, and functioning of DNA, our genetic map and a basic building block of cells. So getting enough folic acid is particularly important for the rapid cell growth of the placenta and developing baby. This is why it is essential for me a talassemia carrier.

Fish oil

Required: Not required

Dosage: N/A

Benefit: Baby brain development

Overdose: None studies has shown any clinical proven effect

It is not a essential supplement for pregnancy woman but me being a kiasumummy want to take everything that is best for my baby if, it is believed. proven to be good. There are several studies show that fish oil can directly or indirectly contribute to baby brain development.

Research 1

Research 2

Research 3

However, studies also show that if a pregnant woman have oily fish more than 2 serving per week, tend to have premature baby or low birth weight. True enough, both my pregnancy does have this problem due to my diet.

Review on supplements –

is the next thing on my list as i am certain of what I need :)

You can read it here!!

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Post Pregnancy Story Ep1 Post-Natal Massage

URUT PANTANG LARANG

Post-Natal Massage

There are so many post natal set in the market which I can’t really decide which to purchase yet.

Most of the post natal set are mostly Malay product and which I don’t really have any close Malay friend that are married and can give advise.

Below are a few that I manage to find and read reviews on, compiled and share my lil thought with you :)

Tanamera Postnatal Care Set (RM350-RM400)

Contents are:

1. Feminine Herbal Wash
2. Herbal Bath
3. Herbal Tea
4. Lavender Floral
5. Herbal Massage Oil
6. Cold Press Virgin Coconut Oil
7. Brown Formulation Body Soap
8. Boreh Body Scrub
9. Calming Herbal Blend Paste
10.Firming Herbal Blend Paste
11.Postpartum Binder

Review:

Value for money: 6/10
Quality: 8/10
Comment: If you opt to go for traditional massage with Tanamera, you must purchase this product – complete set in order to go for their massage. Their massage package range from RM540 (3 sessions) to RM850 (5 sessions). Each session last about 2.5hours. If you stay within 20km from their shop (subang SS15) then they can actually come to your house for service. You may visit their website for more information http://tanamerapostnatal.com/massage/ or read my blog for their massage review :)

AMWay Postnatal Care Set (RM230-RM270)

Contents are:

1. Herbal Douch
2. Herbal Bath
3. Firming Herbal Blend
4. Herbal massage oil for mummy
5. Warming Herbal Blend
6. Calming Herbal Blend
7. Herbal massage oil for baby
8. Postpartum Binder
9. Herbal Tea
10.Capsul after birth 1 & 2

Review:

Value for money: 9/10
Quality: 8.5/10
Comment: If you purchase this product, then you may want to really learn up how to use each of this product very carefully as there are many steps to follow. You can read my blog for further guidance and my review on how to use this product as I have actually use this for my confinement. However, different from Tanamera set is that if you purchase this product you can’t go for Tanamera massage because they do not use other product than their own! :( Thus, I engage a urut lady for my massage. She is a chinese lady who charge RM480 (4 sessions) or RM800 (8 sessions). This product can easily purchase from any AMWay agent.

Mustika Ratu Postnatal Care Set (RM160-RM200)

Contents are:

1. Galian Parem Wangi
2. Pulih Balung Sumsum
3. Pilis Wangi
4. Tapel Raket Mustika Sejati
5. Parem Segar Sumyah
6. Bubuk Bancar Air Susu
7. Minyak Telon
8. Ginasih Pembersih Wanita
9. Kaplet Mimi Lan Mintuno
10.Minyak Telon
11.Postpartum Binder
12.CD on Postnatal Care

Review:

Value for money: 5/10
Quality: 6.5/10
Comment: Personally I did not really use this product but I do have friend given me feedback on this product. She engage a tukang urut (an indonesian) for her massage during her confinement which cost her about RM60 per session. As there are no package, she did about 3 sessions and she stopped because she could not bear the heat during the massage. She mentioned that as she is breastfeeding, the product is a bit too “heaty” for her baby and thus, she only manage to finish less than half of it.

Ibu Halimah Jamu Mak Dara Postnatal Care Set (RM350-RM400)

Contents are:

1. Jamu Mak Dara (Serbuk)
2. Jamu Mak Dara (Kapsul)
3. Losyen Param Ibu Halimah
4. Pilis
5. Bedak Sejuk
6. Rempah Mandi
7. Postpartum Binder
8. Tungku Kukus Herba

Value for money: 6.5/10
Quality: 8/10
Comment: The instruction to use this product can be found at http://www.jamumakdara.com/set_bersalim_arahan.html. Apparently a lot of Malay friend are using this products. According to their review, this product have prestigious branding and have been available at the market for quite some time. However, most of my chinese have not heard of this product before ~ LOL This product review rating is base on the average compiled review.

Nona Roguy Postnatal Care Set (RM300-RM320)

Contents are:

1. Tablet Phyto Natal
2. Akar Herbanika
3. Herbanika Lulur
4. Herbanika Barut
5. Minyak Herbanika
6. Uncang Cuci

Value for money: 8.5/10
Quality: 9/10
Comment: You notice that his product do not have binder which you have buy your own. For me, I personally think that this is too expensive. However, I do read a lot of good review about this product (not very specific what is the good-thing-about-thou!) and I notice no chinese blog review on this product made me hesitate whether will it be able to go with my chinese herbs.

Let me share the review that I compiled which are http://pipoq.blogspot.com/2012/06/review-jenama-set-selepas-bersalin-nona.html and http://hotmummydiva.blogspot.com/2011/09/review-produk-set-bersalin-nona-roguy.html.

Amme Complete Postnatal Care Set (RM300-RM400)

Contents are:

1. Ammy Sixty Days capsule (6 botol)
2. Ammy Heat
3. Ammy Massage
4. Oil Of Telon
5. Tummy Tone
6. Body Tone
7. Postpartum Binder

Value for money: 7/10
Quality: 7.5/10
Comment: The instruction to use the product can be found at http://herbacinta.com/shop/amme-complete. Let me share the review that I found is http://ceritadiadanaku.blogspot.com/2009/06/my-confinement.html. Not much review on this product other than it can shed off KG at the fastest rate.

Have a good buy :)

Freemie with Medela PISA

My maternity leave is coming to the end. As I am going to resume work soon, I have been busy pumping to build up my breastmilk storage.

I am glad to be given the opportunity to try Freemie by XuaAn Best. I am currently using Medela PISA, however I find it inconvenient as I need to hold the 'horns' for the milk to flow into the bottle. With Freemie collection cups, I can pump handsfree with my shirt on and multitasks.

How to connect Freemie to Medela PISA
It is rather easy to connect Freemie to Medela PISA pump. Basically you just need Freemie's Quick Connector and Tubing and connect to Medela's tubing.

Since there are some mummies posted in facebook network that you can get the same or more yield if you replace Freemie's valve with Medela's valve, I have decided to give it a try.

My thoughts after using Freemie with Medela PISA

1. Yes, you can get the same yield using Freemie with Medela's valve.
2. To prevent leakage, it is best if you position your body straight upright.
3. You need to ensure that your bra is tight fitting enough to hold the cups to your breast to avoid loss of suction. This may be a challenge if you need strong suction to draw out milk from your breast.

Where can I buy Freemie collection cups?
XuaAn Best is selling Freemie at RM340 with free shipping (including to Singapore too). Currently they are having a 5% discount storewide --> Price after discount is RM323. If you are unsure whether Freemie will work with your pump or not, they can offer you a free trial with a minimum deposit. This is definitely a plus point for those who wants to try out before purchasing it.


Coming soon...Milk storage and bottle feeding


- HX