How to Fight for Breastfeeding in Your City

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Breastfeeding is a scientifically proven way to reduce risk of disease and create a healthy future for kids and moms.

But not all moms get breastfeeding support they need.

Latina moms especially have less support for breastfeeding in hospitals, the workplace, and early child care settings than their white peers, according to a new Rivard Report article by Amanda Merck of Salud America!, a national Latino child health network funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and based at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio.

Merck’s article highlights ways to increase breastfeeding support for Latina and all moms:

Baby Café. Norma Sifuentes and Diana Montano, two San Antonio health workers, took advantage of a funding opportunity to create Baby Café. The facility is a comfortable place for moms to socialize and get support from breastfeeding peer counselors.

Lactation Stations. Alena Clark and Yvette Lucero-Nguyen, employees of the University of Northern Colorado, helped establish an institute-wide breastfeeding support policy and three lactation stations to provide private, comfortable places to breastfeed.

Baby-Friendly Hospitals. The New Mexico Breastfeeding Task Force teamed with the global Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative to remove barriers and help hospitals adopt more breastfeeding-friendly policies. They also achieved an official Baby-Friendly Designation.

Merck’s article is part of a new series to highlight solutions to Latino health by The Rivard Report and Salud America!.

Check out past articles in the series:

• Salud America!: Keeping Latino Children Fit and Healthy
• Salud America!: How to Make Space for Physical Activity
• San Antonio’s Cherry Street a Case Study for Change

Stay tuned for more articles!