"Mothers benefit from breastfeeding, because it protects against breast cancer, helps their bodies return to the pre-pregnancy condition more quickly, and helps save money," Arlene Toole, Lactation Consultant at Grady Memorial Hospital added.

"Breast milk is easily digested, enhances the baby's immune system, and contains antibodies from the mother that pass to the baby and help protect against illness and allergies. Human milk contains a balance of nutrients that closely matches human infant requirements for growth and development, enhances neurodevelopment, and protects against childhood obesity, Toole explained."

The Department of Health and Human Services, Healthy People 2010 goal is to increase the proportion of women who breastfeed their infants to 75 percent in the early postpartum period, 50 percent at six months of age and 25 percent at twelve months of age. Currently, the National Immunization Survey, which gathers breastfeeding data among women in Georgia, indicates 62.7 percent initiation, 30 percent six-month duration and 11.8 percent twelve-month duration rates.

The most recent Centers for Disease Control Pediatric Nutrition Surveillance System Data, which gathers data among WIC participants in Georgia, indicates 49.3 percent breastfeeding initiation and 16.3 percent six-month duration rates.

"WIC has provided nutrition education including nutritional counseling, breastfeeding support and supplemental foods to low income families for over thirty years," said Alwin Peterson, WIC Branch Director. "In federal fiscal year 2004, the Georgia WIC Program provided benefits to 15,502 breastfeeding women and their infants."

The Georgia WIC Program was recently awarded a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Breastfeeding Promotion grant, which will be used to train breastfeeding peer counselors, who are current or former WIC participants in the community with personal breastfeeding experience who provide information and support to other WIC mothers. Odette Hooks, breastfeeding counselor with Cobb Douglas Health district, stated she wanted to be a peer counselor "to make a difference in the community, making mothers aware of the benefits of breastfeeding using examples of how breastfeeding worked for me."

For more information on strategies to promote breastfeeding and support programs across the state, please call (404) 657-2884 or download the recently released Overweight and Obesity in Georgia 2005 report (pages 25-27). Additional information accessible at: https://health.state.ga.us/programs/nutrition/breastfeeding/ , https://www.fns.usda.gov/wic/Breastfeeding/breastfeedingmainpage.HTM and https://www.cdc.gov/breastfeeding/ .

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