Submitted by Dr. Diana Yu, Health Officer for Thurston and Mason Counties
This week is World Breastfeeding Week (WBW), a time when people across the globe come together to celebrate breastfeeding. Come celebrate WBW in downtown Olympia on August 3. The South Sound Breastfeeding Network will be sponsoring the World Breastfeeding Week Walk and Resource Fair at the Hands On Children’s Museum from 8:45 AM – 11:00 AM. All families are welcome! For more information, check out www.southsoundbreastfeeding.org.
Multiple scientific studies show that breastfeeding has numerous benefits for mom and baby. Breastfeeding lowers the mother’s risk of developing type 2 diabetes, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and postpartum depression. Breastfed babies are more protected from serious diseases like asthma, obesity, diabetes, childhood leukemia, and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). In Washington State, over 89% of moms and baby begin breastfeeding and that is great news! However, only 34% of these babies are still breastfeeding at their first birthday, even though the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends all babies breastfeed that long.
One factor that makes a big difference helping women achieve their breastfeeding goals is support. This year’s theme for WBW is “Breastfeeding Support: Close to Mothers.” This theme highlights the importance of providing support for breastfeeding families. Sometimes families are looking for support as they start out breastfeeding, sometimes they have questions about how to manage returning to work and breastfeeding, or sometimes they just want to swap stories about their new little loved one. Having a reliable, caring source of help and information is vital to success.
In Thurston County, we are fortunate to have great resources for breastfeeding families. One local resource is La Leche League (LLL). LLL is an international organization that works locally to “help mothers worldwide to breastfeed through mother-to-mother support, encouragement, information, and education…” LLL offers support over the phone, email, via text, and in person at meetings. Their support is offered to anyone who wants to breastfeed their baby and their support is always free.
Locally LLL meets the fourth Monday of each month at WomanCare Offices located at 205 Lilly Rd NE, Olympia at 6 PM. Fathers are welcome at this meeting as well. They also have meetings on the second Friday of each month at the Olympia Unitarian Universalist Congregation located at 2300 East End St NW, Olympia at 10:30 AM. Contact them at 360-975-4826 or 1-800-599-7650, or email at lalecheleagueolympia@gmail.com.
The Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program also provides support for families receiving services from the local clinics. The Washington State WIC program offers pregnant women and new moms a variety of resources from educational materials and classes to lactation consultants and breastfeeding peer counselors. The peer-counseling program is one of the newest components to WIC services. Breastfeeding peer counselors are local community women who have successfully breastfed, received training in breastfeeding education, and are able to help women reach their goals for breastfeeding. To learn more about this program contact your local WIC clinic. To see if you qualify for WIC Services, contact the Family Health Hotline at 1-800-322-2588.
Come to the World Breastfeeding Week Walk and Resource Fair on August 3 at 8:45 am and learn what it’s all about!
