Happy World Breastfeeding Week!!! August is also Breastfeeding Awareness Month. We all know I’m a breastfeeding supporter and have been nursing my kids for the last 3.5 years… I just wrote a guest post for the Breastfeeding Cafe Carnival on breastfeeding support and I’d love if you checked it out. Writing it made me tear up–it’s all about my beginning struggles after Ryan’s birth and where I found my support and why I think that’s so important.

Full-term breastfeeding aside, the benefits of exclusively breastfeeding just the first 6 months are still amazing. From the US Department of Health and Human Services on Women’s Health:

• If 90% of of families exclusively breast fed for 6 months, almost 1,000 infant deaths may be prevented annually.
• …and and $13 billion would be saved in medical costs each year.

The WHO (World Health Organization) recommends that babies should be exclusively breast-fed for the first six months of life and then receive a combination of breast milk and easily digestible foods through the age of TWO years.

From the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), infants who are breastfed for the first 6 months of life have…

• a 72% lower risk of hospitalization for lower respiratory tract infections,
• a 64% reduced risk for nonspecific gastrointestinal tract infections,
• a 58% risk reduction for the intestinal infection necrotizing enterocolitis in preterm infants,
• a 27% to 42 percent reduction in allergic diseases.

When asked at the hospital at birth, the majority of mothers express a desire to breastfeed their babies. However, only 49% are still nursing at 6 months and only 16.4% are exclusively breastfeeding at 6 months (from the recent CDC report). It all starts in the hospitals and we need to see more support for exclusive breastfeeding there. I know when Ryan was born, we had formula shoved on us and I was told I wasn’t producing milk (one day after a cesarean?!)–they should be more educated on breastfeeding and infant nutrition. A local hospital is having an upcoming meeting on the “Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative” (BFHI) that would promote exclusive breast-feeding while infants stayed in the hospital… check into that at your local hospitals!

Breastfeeding Ryan at the park when he was 16 months old

Bookmark these breastfeeding resources:

• One of my favorite all-time resources for breastfeeding information is Kelly Mom.
• Best for Babes is another amazing resource to help us all beat the booby traps.
• Leading Lady has a blog where you can submit questions to a lactation consultant: Amy’s Corner. They also have a Breastfeeding A-Z website and a free breastfeeding e-book you can download.
• Earth Mama Angel Baby has some of my favorite breastfeeding products and they also have a free Guide to Herbs and Breastfeeding that you can download.
• La Leche League offers local support, find a chapter near you, and resources on their website.
• Big Latch On occurs every year during World Breastfeeding Week to raise awareness and offer support. Find an event in your area! I’ll be at Rockford’s Big Latch On this Saturday.

Do you have any to add? Please comment below!!!

Discounts and giveaways for World Breastfeeding Week and Breastfeeding Awareness Month:

• ecomom & GreenCupboards: free shipping on all nursing items through August, use code BETTER4BABY
• Leading Lady: 15% off sitewide through 8/7 for Breastfeeding Week, use code VACATION – plus free shipping on the nursing collection!
• Naked Nursing Tanks are 15% off for Breastfeeding Week

• Giveaway for a Leading Lady nursing bra from The Baby Ladies
• Giveaway for a Dr. Brown’s Gia breastfeeding pillow (and another)
• Giveaway for a Philips AVENT Comfort Breast Pump and accessory kit
• Giveaway for mamatea – winner’s choice (teas for breastfeeding as well as pregnancy, TTC, etc)
• Huge giveaway for World Breastfeeding Week (Beco, Undercover Mama, Chewbeads, Milky, & Lansinoh)
• Giveaway for a $50 Amazon GC to help with nursing supplies
• Giveaway for a Bebe au Lait nursing cover

For some fun, you can share breastfeeding photos with Latch the Babes on Instagram – they’re doing a #bresatfeedbecause challenge for World Breastfeeding Week and will share your photos!

If you have any you’d like me to add to this list, just let me know! Happy to add more 🙂 I’ve spent all morning searching websites and facebook for WBW related giveaways and discounts and surprisingly didn’t find too many! Hope this helps. And a huge THANK YOU to all the supporters, it is noticed and very much appreciated!

Happy Breastfeeding 🙂