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10:26 a.m. July 31, 2012
World Breastfeeding Week event in Knoxville kicks off August 1, 2012
KNOXVILLE -- An "Ages and Stages" themed celebration will kick off World Breastfeeding Week at New Harvest Park on Wednesday, August 1, 2012.
Hosted by the East Tennessee Breastfeeding Coalition (ETBC), the event will run from August 1-7. The kickoff will be from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on August 1. At 12:30, ETBC will present the Marcie Singleton Award to Knox County Public Library. The award is given to a business or organization that has best provided for the needs of breastfeeding mothers and their babies.
The event is free and open to the public. Breastfeeding mothers and moms-to-be are encouraged to attend.
"We are very honored to be recognized as an employer who values breast-feeding," said Myretta Black, Knox County Public Library director. "Giving children a healthy start through proper nutrition can set a tone for life. Research is clear that breast-feeding babies is one of the most important foundations to good health."
Marcie Singleton was the Nutrition Director and Breastfeeding Coordinator for the Knox County Health
Department's Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). She was a tireless
advocate for mothers' and babies' rights to breastfeed. Her work included consultation with businesses to build
lactation programs using the Business Case for Breastfeeding, a comprehensive program designed to educate
employers about the value of supporting breastfeeding employees in the workplace.
As part of the "Ages and Stages" theme, participants will be able to visit booths with information and activities
related to the baby's age and stage in life, starting with newborn and going all the way to two years old, which
is the World Health Organization's recommendation for breastfeeding. Booth sponsors include:
• 0-3 months - Fluff and Stuff, baby wearing items and ideas
• 3-6 months - Knox County Health Department's WIC program and Dietitian Sarah Griswold, back to work
• 6-9 months - Lisa Ross Breastfeeding Center, mama craft making nursing necklaces
• 9-12 months - Amy Dever, UT Nutrition Department, healthy finger foods for the breastfeeding baby 12 months and beyond
• Holistic Moms Network, baby led weaning
Not only do breastfed babies and their mothers receive numerous benefits from their time breastfeeding, but
employers and society as a whole profit from the relationship. Breastfed babies have fewer ear infections,
lower respiratory infections, and less diarrhea, as well as a reduced risk for asthma, obesity, and type 2
diabetes. Mothers who breastfeed have a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, breast cancer, ovarian cancer and
postpartum depression. Employers benefit because parents of breastfed babies miss less work time caring for
their sick child. They also save the medical costs from dependents on the company health care plan.
Societal benefits of breastfeeding include the prevention of 1,000 infant deaths annually and the savings of approximately $13 billion per year nationally. Medical care costs are lower for fully breastfed infants than those infants who were never breastfed. Breastfed infants typically need fewer sick care visits, prescriptions, and hospitalizations. Breastfeeding also is environmentally friendly. It requires no formula production, packaging, or shipping.
The components of time and place are both regulated by state and federal law. Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-1-305
(1999) requires employers to provide daily unpaid break time for a mother to express breast milk for her infant
child. Employers also are required to make a reasonable effort to provide a private location, other than a toilet
stall, in close proximity to the workplace for this activity. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of
2010 also addresses an employer's responsibilities toward breastfeeding mothers. Employers are required to
provide "reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for her nursing child for one year after
the child's birth each time such employee has need to express the milk." Employers are also required to
provide "a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and
the public, which may be used by an employee to express breast milk."
Source: Knox County Health Department
Published July 31, 2012
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