Each year in Canada, World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated October 1-7. This year’s theme highlights the fact that breastfeeding women need support in order to start breastfeeding, and to continue.

Infant feeding is one of the most important decisions that new families make. Breastfeeding is recommended as the ideal way to feed infants and young children, exclusively for the first six months, and then continued for up to 2 years and beyond. Evidence shows that infants who are not breastfed are at a higher risk to develop a wide range of chronic and acute illnesses and disease.

Locally, 90% of moms start out breastfeeding but rates decline rapidly. By 6 months, only about 26% of moms are exclusively breastfeeding and only 17% are breastfeeding at 12 months (Middlesex-London Health Unit, 2011).

Support is key to helping moms establish breastfeeding and to continue. That support can come from many places, like her partner, family, peer moms, health care providers, workplaces, the community, and society more broadly.

What can you do to support breastfeeding? Help moms find their Circle of Support!

From September 30 - October 4, look for …

• RogersTV daytime Interviews
• Central Library Displays
• And follow the discussion on Twitter and Facebook

For more information about breastfeeding supports in our community, call Health Connection 519-850-2280