Keep Mother and Baby Together ? It?s Best for Mother, Baby, and Breastfeeding

You’ve waited nine very long months to greet your baby.? Now the big day is here!? Do you really want to work through labor only to hand your baby off to someone else at the very last minute?? Babies who stay with moms, particularly skin to skin, tend to stay warmer and breastfeed better and longer.? Mom also benefits from the close contact and nursing, including have her uterus contract and minimizing her bleeding.

So unless there is a good medical reason to remove your baby - don’t do it.? Keep your baby rather than hand her over for weight checks, and other routine shots and procedures.

Lamaze Healthy Birth Practice | Mothers Advocate Video | Mothers Advocate Handout

Breastfeeding Promotion Act - Help!

Here is a chance for you to help tell congress to support breastfeeding!

On June 11, 2009, Representative Carolyn B. Maloney (NY) and Senator Jeff Merkley (OR) introduced the Breastfeeding Promotion Act in both houses of Congress, to provide a unified national policy to keep mothers, their children, and their communities healthy. This is the first time the bill has been introduced in the Senate.

The Breastfeeding Promotion Act (H.R. 2819, S. 1244) includes five provisions:

  1. Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect breastfeeding women from being fired or discriminated against in the workplace.
  2. Provides tax incentives for businesses that establish private lactation areas in the workplace, or provide breastfeeding equipment or consultation services to their employees.
  3. Provides for a performance standard to ensure breast pumps are safe and effective.
  4. Allows breastfeeding equipment and consultation services to be tax deductible for families (amends Internal Revenue Code definition of “medical care”).
  5. Protects the privacy of breastfeeding mothers by ensuring they have break time and a private place to pump (applies to employers with 50 or more employees, see text of legislation for details).

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Act now to support breastfeeding!

Call to Action on Breastfeeding

The US Breastfeeding Committee (yes, there is such a thing!) has decided that after 10 years, the nation needs a revived direction for breastfeeding support, protection and promotion, but they need our help.? From the press release:

We are seeking comments from individuals and organizations about breastfeeding in the United States. We welcome your suggestions about policies, activities, or other initiatives to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding that need to be considered for inclusion in our national action plan for the next decade. We are especially interested in new ideas that will increase equity in breastfeeding rates among all racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups. Ideas should build on programs and policies that are recognized to be effective or evidence-based. In addition, we welcome suggestions to adopt, expand, implement, research, or improve existing strategies.
Visit this link to submit your comments (deadline is May 31, 2009):
http://www.blsmeetings.net/owh_call_to_action_on_breastfeeding/index.cfm
This committee needs to hear from readers like you and others who actually have knowledge and experience.? Speak not only for yourself but for the countless others who won’t be speaking for themselves because either they won’t know about it or don’t have the means to comment.? Not only should you comment, but you could also
  • write a letter to the editor
  • post on your own blogs
  • notify your local La Leche League and birth network groups
We are being asked for our comments.? Now is our chance to help make a difference.? Comment following the link above NOW!

Hong Kong Government Tackles Public Breastfeeding