By Alixandria Wells-Good
Contributing writer
August is Breastfeeding Awareness month. The whole month is dedicated to celebrating the benefits of human milk while also working to protect, promote, and support lactation practices and policies. It is an opportunity to raise awareness and increase support of women and families who choose to breastfeed.
According to the CDC “the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that infants be exclusively breastfed for about the first 6 months, and then continuing breastfeeding while introducing appropriate complementary foods until your child is 12 months old or older. The American Academy of Pediatrics and the World Health Organization also recommend exclusive breastfeeding for about the first 6 months, with continued breastfeeding along with introducing appropriate complementary foods for up to 2 years of age or longer.” The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends “exclusive breastfeeding for about the first six months. We support continued breastfeeding after solid foods are introduced as long as you and your baby desire, for 2 years or beyond.”
There are countless scientifically proven benefits to breastfeeding. A few noteworthy or interesting facts include:
-According to the Cleveland clinic, breastfed babies are at lower risk for things such as SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome), childhood obesity, diabetes (later in life), respiratory infections, childhood leukemia, among other things.
-Research shows that breastfeeding has significant positive effects on babies’ long-term brain development.
-The Cleveland Clinic also states that breast milk contains antibodies that protect against infection and boost immunity, and that breast milk actually changes in composition to meet your baby’s nutritional needs over time.
-Breast milk also lowers a mother’s risk for a lot of things, like postpartum depression, and lowers risks for diseases such as ovarian cancer, breast cancer, type 2 diabetes, and more later in life, according to many sources.
On August 14, the Champaign County WIC (Women, Infants, and Children program) held a “lactation in the workplace” luncheon where local businesses were invited to participate by sending a representative to learn more about making the workplace a more lactation-supportive place. Several local businesses participated including KTH Parts Industries, Weidmann Electrical Technology, and CORS Head Start. The workshop included education on federal and state laws surrounding breastfeeding/pumping in the workplace, information on ways that employers can make sure that they are compliant by law and supportive to their employees, and open discussion regarding the topic.
Local company Weidmann Electrical Technology human resources representative Alexa Lowry shared their recent experience purchasing a movable “lactation pod” to be used at their business for any breastfeeding mother they employ. The “pod” makes it possible for the manufacturer to always have a safe, clean environment for employees when they need to express milk. The pod includes outlets for pumps, a cushioned chair, passive ambient lights and noise dampening panels, a fold down desk, among other features.
According to the Ohio Department of Health (ODH), “the federal Break Time for Nursing Mothers law requires employers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to provide basic accommodations for breastfeeding mothers at work. Employers are required to provide reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for her nursing child for one year after the child’s birth each time such employee has need to express the milk. Employers are also required to provide a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public, which may be used by an employee to express breast milk.”
There are proven statistics that show that there are even benefits to employers who invest in employee lactation accommodations because breastfeeding can be linked to lower healthcare costs, lower absenteeism for both mothers and fathers, lower turnover rates, and improved employee morale.
Candice Myers, Champaign County WIC Project Director, shared that in Ohio 82% of newborns are breastfed. However by 6 months only 54% of babies are still breastfed, and only 33% are breastfed by their first birthday. Many mothers who return to work outside of the home find it difficult to continue breastfeeding upon returning to work due to lack of support, and therefore end breastfeeding to be able to maintain their work financially supporting their households. However, knowledgeable employers can do their part in helping mothers succeed at their breastfeeding journeys by putting in place simple measures to ensure their breastfeeding employees are supported and have a clean, safe environment where they can express milk when needed.
According to the Ohio Department of Health website, the ODH, in partnership with Every Mother, Inc., developed the Ohio Workplace PLUS (Providing Lactation Upgrades and Support) toolkit. This is a free comprehensive resource for Human Resource professionals, supervisors, and employees. The toolkit’s intentions are to help businesses establish or enhance existing lactation accommodations. It has basic guidelines for just starting out. The toolkit is based on the national Business Case for Breastfeeding as well as findings from a statewide survey of Ohio businesses who attended the 2019 Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) conference in Columbus, Ohio. The Ohio Workplace PLUS toolkit can be found on the ODH website.
Locally, breastfeeding support can be found at the Champaign County WIC program, where they can provide prenatal education and postpartum support, latch assessments, “feed-and-weigh” to determine how much the baby is taking from a breast, pump and lactation accessories (bras, nursing pads, etc.), help sizing for pump flanges, and pumps (hand or electric). The local WIC also has an IBCLC who can do infant assessments to determine if a baby has issues with tongue function. For those not on WIC, Nurture Columbus offers in-home lactation assessments, but they utilize insurance, or a person can do self-pay.
For those wanting to be a part of supporting breastfeeding women in the community, a Champaign-Logan Breastfeeding Coalition is being formed. The group meets bi-monthly on the second Thursday at 11 a.m. The group states their goal is to “work collaboratively to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding and other methods of providing human milk in our community. More information can be found on the Champaign Health District website.
The Champaign Health District and WIC’s lactation staff are holding a Picnic in the Park to celebrate National Breastfeeding Month. The picnic will be held on Friday, August 30 from 10 a.m. to noon at Melvin Park. Snacks and drinks will be provided. All are welcome to the event.
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