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2009 WORLD BREASTFEEDING
MONTH CELEBRATION
“THINK EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS” |
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Each year, over 120 countries
celebrate World Breastfeeding Week the first week of August. The WIC
(Women, Infants and Children) Program of the Palm Beach County Health
Department celebrates World Breastfeeding Month during the entire month
of August.
This year’s theme focuses on BREASTFEEDING: A VITAL
EMERGENCY RESPONSE. As the hurricane season approaches,
breastfeeding can be a lifesaver. Infants are the most vulnerable in an
emergency. There may be no clean drinking water and no cleaning and
sanitization of feeding utensils. Breastfeeding mothers give their
infants a clean, safe, sustainable food and water supply and actively
protect their infants from infections..
The American Academy of Pediatrics supports the following
facts:
(1) With appropriate support and guidance, stress
does not cause breast
milk to dry up.
(2) Malnourished women can breastfeed.
(3) Optimal human milk supply is maintained by infant demand.
(4) For some mothers and babies, once breastfeeding has stopped, it
may
be resumed successfully with appropriate help.
Support for breastfeeding mothers
is always important, but especially during a disaster. Below are
websites for national, state and local breastfeeding references.
www.pbcbreastfeeding.org
www.lalecheleague.org
www.flbreastfeeding.org
www.worldbreastfeedingweek.org
-View the UNICEF YouTube messages on breastfeeding during disasters
 print
this page
Palm Beach County:
Florenzia Davis, PhD,MS,RD,LD/N
Senior Public Health Nutritionist
(561) 671-4000 x 4048 |
