(SAVANNAH, Ga.) In observance of National Breastfeeding Month in August and Black Breastfeeding Week Aug 25-31, Healthy Savannah and other local advocates are working to underscore the need for better corporate and community support of Black breastfeeding mothers, especially those in the workplace.
Healthy Savannah and the YMCA of Coastal Georgia, as administrators of the Centers for Disease Control’s Racial & Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) grant; along with the Chatham County Health Department, Georgia Southern University Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health and Glow Lactation, are offering several events throughout the month. All are free and open to the public:
Glow Lactation will host a peer advocates session at the Armstrong Center in classroom 105 on Georgia Southern University’s Armstrong Campus at 6PM on Tuesday, Aug. 29. This workshop will provide information for community members to advocate and promote breastfeeding throughout the community.
The Department of Health Coastal Health District will host virtual WIC advocate training sessions on the third Friday of each month at 10am. The next session will be August 18th at 10am . To register and for more information, visit https://coastalhealthdistrict.org/programs-services/health-promotion-disease-prevention/wic-ambassadors/
Glow Lactation will offer an online Mommy Moments Breastfeeding Support Group at 6 p.m.on Monday, Aug. 21 via ZOOM. This monthly support group was created to encourage, empower, and give Black moms a voice to tell their breastfeeding journey. Register at www.glowlactation.com or text MOMMYMOMENTS to 912-758-3438.
The Coastal Health District invites breastfeeding moms, their families and friends, and breastfeeding advocates to join in a World Breastfeeding Week celebration on August 5 from 9-11 a.m. in Savannah. This family-friendly event will be held in Forsyth Park and will include a walk for breastfeeding awareness, information on the benefits of breastfeeding, raffle prizes, and free swag bags while supplies last.
“We are tapping into the 2023 National Breastfeeding Month theme, This is Our Why, to help shine a light on why it is so important to center our conversation on the babies and families who need our advocacy,” said Nandi A. Marshall, DrPH, MPH, CHES, CLC, CDE. “Supporting nursing parents as they return to work is the right thing to do. It benefits the family and community, including their place of employment.”
Marshall is an associate professor and associate dean for Academic Affairs at the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health at Georgia Southern University.
She is leading local efforts funded by the REACH grant to encourage Savannah businesses to adopt breastfeeding-friendly policies and environments and to help them comply with a new law.
The PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act (S. 1658/H.R. 3110), was signed into national law on December 29, 2022. The legislation added several important changes to the Break Time for Nursing Mothers law passed in 2010. The original law required employers to provide reasonable break time and a private, non-bathroom space for breastfeeding employees to pump during the work day but did not cover one out of every four birthing parents of childbearing age.
The updated law extends the right to break time and space to pump at work to millions more workers, including teachers and nurses. It also makes it possible for workers to file a lawsuit to seek monetary remedies if their employer fails to comply and clarifies that pumping time must be paid if an employee is not completely relieved from duty. The law also increases this accommodation from one year to two years. Learn more at https://www.usbreastfeeding.org/pump-act.html
Marshall and the local advocates are also focused on increasing awareness of the inequities that discourage breastfeeding by Black mothers in Chatham County and identifying opportunities to remove those obstacles, especially in the workplace.
She said the benefits to businesses often include increased retention rates, improved morale, and lower healthcare and insurance costs. Meanwhile, the cost to employers may be little or nothing to convert an empty office or meeting room into a pleasant lactation space.
Organizations that pledge to create policies and provide spaces will be recognized by Healthy Savannah.
“Supporting parents in their nursing journey is the right thing to do, but we also know breastfed and chestfed babies often have fewer stomach and digestive issues and a lower risk for many diseases such as asthma, SIDS and diabetes,” said Shawntay Gadson, MHA, IBCLC. “Giving breastfeeding employees a safe and comfortable lactation space and adequate break time can be vitally important to the wellbeing of workers as well as their children.”
Gadson is a lactation consultant and owner of Glow Lactation Services. She also works in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Memorial and with various programs supported by REACH grant funding. She has first-hand experience in the health value of breastfeeding.
A 2019 CDC report on Racial Disparities in Breastfeeding Initiation and Duration indicated that Black infants had a significantly lower rate of any breastfeeding at age 3 months (58.0%) than did white infants (72.7%); and that at age 6 months, the rates were 44.7% among Black infants and 62.0% among white infants.
For more information on National Breastfeeding Month in August and Black Breastfeeding Week August 25-31, visit USBC at https://www.usbreastfeeding.org/
Visit https://healthysavannah.org/breastfeeding-resources/ for information on adopting a workplace policy to support breastfeeding employees. For lactation resources and breastfeeding support in Chatham County, visit herohelpme.com.
ABOUT THE YMCA OF COASTAL GEORGIA/HEALTHY SAVANNAH GRANT FOR RACIAL AND ETHNIC APPROACHES TO COMMUNITY HEALTH: In September 2018, Healthy Savannah and the YMCA of Coastal Georgia were awarded a five-year, $3.4 million grant called Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health. Awarded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the funding is being deployed in an “upstream” approach by the Savannah/Chatham County project team to foster sustainable health equity among Black residents in low-wealth neighborhoods. The aim of the local project, called Healthy Opportunities Powering Equity, or HOPE, is to increase the availability of high-quality nutrition; promote physical activity through creating greater access to safe places to walk, run, bike and play; and foster stronger connections between people and the healthcare providers who serve them. Working with more than 200 community partners and organizations, the team is committed to elevating the health and wellness of the community through policy, systems, and environmental change. In July 2022, Healthy Savannah received the CDC’s 2022 REACH Lark Galloway-Gilliam Award for Advancing Health Equity Challenge. The award recognizes extraordinary individuals and entities whose work has contributed to advancing health equity.
healthysavannah.org ymcaofcoastalga.org.
MEDIA CONTACT
Marjorie Young
Carriage Trade Public Relations® Inc.
912.844.9990
www.carriagetradepr.com
marjorie@carriagetradepr.com