Aug. 1 signifies the kickoff for World Breastfeeding Week (Aug. 1-7) as well as August as National Breastfeeding Month. Each year, the United States Breastfeeding Committee (USBC) requests a Congressional Proclamation to declare August as National Breastfeeding Month in the United States. In 2021, the USBC piloted a toolkit that individuals could use to urge their governor to proclaim August as “Breastfeeding Month” in their state or territory. Kansas has joined the list! Governor Kelly signed the proclamation for Kansas on July 29, 2024. The theme this year is “Nourish, Sustain, Thrive.”
National Breastfeeding Month 2024 Weekly Observances
Week 1 (Aug. 1-7): World Breastfeeding Week and National WIC Breastfeeding Week. Theme: Closing the Gap: Breastfeeding support for All.
Week 2 (Aug. 8-14): Indigenous Milk Medicine Week. Theme: Mind. Body, Milk Medicine.
Week 3 (Aug. 15-21): Asian American Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Breastfeeding Week. Theme: To Be Announced.
Week 4 (Aug. 25-31): Black Breastfeeding Week. Theme: Listen Up! Reclaiming our Narrative and Centering Our Stories for Breastfeeding Justice.
Week 5 (Sept. 1-7): Workplace Lactation Week. Theme: Policy to Practice: Making Lactation Support a Reality.
Week 6 (Sept. 3-9) Semana de La Lactancia Latina. Theme: Reclaiming Culture Through Lactation.
Most of us have heard about how breastfeeding positively affects the health of infants and toddlers. Breastfeeding also positively impacts families financially as well as the environment. However, many have not heard about the positive impacts on a mother’s health. Women who breastfeed their children lower their risk of breast cancer. According to an epidemiological study published in the The Lancet, breastfeeding is dose specific. For every 12 months of breastfeeding, the risk of breast cancer goes down by 4.3%. This can be for one child or a combination of children. Breastfeeding also reduces the risk of ovarian cancer, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes as reported by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Finally, studies also show that breastfeeding can help lower the risk of osteoporosis and stroke. That is a lot of health benefits that make for healthier women and society. And those are only the physical health benefits. There are also social-emotional benefits as well that help with bonding and parenting.
Just because a woman wants to breastfeed though doesn’t mean that she has the support to do so. While breastfeeding is natural, it isn’t always easy. The World Breastfeeding Week campaign this year focuses on survival, health and wellbeing. It will showcase the need to improve breastfeeding support to reduce inequalities that exist in our society with a special focus on breastfeeding in times of emergencies and crisis. A mother who is breastfeeding can continue to feed her baby without the need for clean water, formula or a way to boil water. Feeding her baby is one less thing to think about during an emergency or crisis.
Join us to celebrate mothers and to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding and human milk feeding for the 14th annual National Breastfeeding Month. In Hays and Ellis County, La Leche League of the Western Plains and the Ellis County Breastfeeding Coalition will hold a celebration on Aug. 14 at 10 a.m. during our regularly scheduled La Leche League meeting. Come see what in-person support is all about and help us celebrate breastfeeding in Ellis County. Refreshments will be served.
Find more information online at https://worldbreastfeedingweek.org/ or https://www.usbreastfeeding.org/national-breastfeeding-month.html.
Monique Koerner is the Family and Community Wellness Agent with K-State Research and Extension – Cottonwood District. You may reach her at: 785-628-9430 or moniquek@ksu.edu.
