World Breastfeeding Week will be celebrated Aug. 1-7 and once again, Cook County organizations plan to take part in the event.
The 2013 theme, “Breastfeeding Support: Close to Mothers,” highlights the importance of providing support to breastfeeding families.
Infant feeding is one of the most important decisions that new families make; evidence is clear that breastfeeding is the ideal way to feed an infant. Research shows that infants who are not exclusively breastfed for their first six months of life are more likely to develop a wide range of chronic and acute diseases. Mothers also benefit from breastfeeding with a decreased risk for breast and ovarian cancers.
Despite most mothers wanting to breastfeed, many are met with multiple and complex barriers that keep them from achieving those goals. Support and encouragement from all angles can make success possible. Negative attitudes and practices of the mother’s closest support network can also pose sizeable barriers.
As part of the observation of World Breastfeeding Week, posters featuring breastfeeding will once again be placed in various public places in Cook County, said local advocate Angie Works. The posters are part of a campaign sponsored by the Women, Infants & Children (WIC) Program of Minnesota as an effort to normalize the image of breastfeeding in society.
Cook County has variety of resources for mothers seeking breastfeeding support. Works is a breastfeeding peer counselor. Kristin Wharten at Sawtooth Mountain Clinic is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant. Mothers can also turn to Teresa Borak at the clinic and Public Health Nurse Alison Heeren. In addition, there is motherto mother support group called Bosom Buddies.
“Support from community is an essential part of a family’s successful breastfeeding,” said Works.
For more information, contact the WIC staff at the Sawtooth Mountain Clinic at (218) 387-2330.
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