There are still workplace policies which don’t allow working mothers to breastfeed their babies on the job, although this is one of the most natural processes.
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While breastfeeding rates have increased in all regions of the world, global progress has stalled.
Although annual events such as World Breastfeeding Week aim to provide information and support to mothers of newborns about the potential benefits of breastfeeding, many still scoff at the practice.
Lynchburg, VA- “Breastfeeding In the Workplace” is the theme of this year’s worldwide World Breastfeeding Week. This includes stores, day care centers, doctors’ offices, restaurants, parks, movie theaters and many other places.
“The biggest thing is understanding how breastfeeding benefits the baby and also what we can do to support breastfeeding”. The employer must make “reasonable efforts” to provide the employee with the use of a space, “other than a toilet stall”, to express milk in private.
These recommendations are based on research that demonstrates the health benefits from breastfeeding that range from reduced infections and improved IQ in babies to lower risk of breast and ovarian cancer in mothers, PAHO said. As it turns out, breastfeeding is also beneficial for mother emotionally and physically health.
A local non-profit, The Motherhood Collective is trying to make working and feeding your child something everyone can be successful with.
Data provided in the 2012 Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) and The Oklahoma Toddler Survey (TOTS, 2013), compiled by the health department, indicates that 85.6 percent of Oklahoma mothers initiated breastfeeding.
Six months of breastfeeding is recommended by experts at AAP. Infant formula is able to mimic a few of the nutritional components of breast milk, but formula cannot hope to duplicate the vast and constantly changing array of essential nutrients in human milk.
“We didn’t get as many people in Mandurah as we did last year”, Mandurah organizer Leisha Allen said.
A statement issued in Accra by Radhika Choksey, Philips Group Communications, Africa said the report aimed to uncover the key breastfeeding obstacles for working women in both Ghana and Kenya in order to identify opportunities to support and empower them.
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As a further sign of support, in the county, three employers have been awarded Employers Supporting Breastfeeding Awards.
