For Immediate Release CONTACT: Lauren Henderson, 440-350-2604
July 19, 2011 LAKE COUNTY GENERAL HEALTH DISTRICT
AUGUST 1 MARKS THE BEGINNING OF BREASTFEEDING AWARENESS MONTH
August is Breastfeeding Awareness Month in Ohio and August 1-7, 2011 is World Breastfeeding Week (WBW). The health benefits of breastfeeding have been proven for both mother and child. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that Ohio ranks 42nd in the United States for its number of mothers who breastfeed. Clearly, we can do better!
This year’s WBW theme is Breastfeeding – Takin’ it to the Streets! and the slogan is Breastfeeding Rocks! “The more our society accepts breastfeeding as the normal, natural way to feed a baby, the healthier and better off we will be as a nation, state, and community,” said Lauren Henderson, Lake County WIC Program Director. “In light of the financial and life-saving benefits of breastfeeding, the entire community must cooperate and support breastfeeding. In the end, our whole society benefits from having healthier mothers, babies and children when breastfeeding is promoted, protected and supported.”
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the World Health Organization (WHO) recommend that a baby be fed only breast milk for the first six months of life and that they continue to be breastfed with the addition of appropriate solid food for the first year and beyond. A recent article in Pediatrics determined that the United States of America has the potential to avoid more than 900 infant deaths and save $13 billion a year in medical costs if more mothers breastfed their children. Some of the benefits of breastfeeding include:
• Children receive the most complete mix of nutrients and antibodies;
• Less risk of childhood obesity; and
• Breastfeeding lowers the mother’s risk of breast and ovarian cancer.
One of the most important things businesses and the rest of the community can do is to allow mothers to feel comfortable nursing in public. Hungry babies need to eat and Ohio law (Section 3781.55 of the Ohio Revised Code) allows breastfeeding in public. Businesses can show their support by placing the “Nursing Babies are Welcome Here” universal sign for breastfeeding in their windows (Free images can be downloaded at http://kellymom.com/momblog/blog-post/breastfeeding-welcome-here/) and educating their staff on the acceptance of breastfeeding in their establishments.
Hospitals can adopt the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding as an indication that they are dedicated to supporting new mothers who choose to breastfeed (see http://www.unicef.org/newsline/tenstps.htm).
Local county fairs may be an ideal place to teach young children about how other mammals feed their young with milk that is made just for them. Child care providers and libraries can stock children’s books that show breastfeeding as a normal part of family life. To make informed choices in the future, children need to learn that all mammals (including humans) grow best on their own mother’s milk.
FOR MORE INFORMATION about breastfeeding in Lake County please call the Help Me Grow Helpline at 1-800-755-GROW or The Lake County Breastfeeding Peer Program at 440.350.2249
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