CHENANGO COUNTY – World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year from August 1 to 7 all over the globe to encourage breastfeeding and improve the health of babies around the world.

The theme of World Breastfeeding Week this year is “Sustaining Breastfeeding Together.”

This theme is about working together for the common good, which produces sustainable results, greater than the sum of individual efforts. Collaborations and partnerships provide a platform to protect, promote and support breastfeeding and are a key to sustainable development. This year’s World Breastfeeding Week message calls on advocates, activists, and decision-makers to forge new and purposeful partnerships to promote, protect, and support breastfeeding.

Here are a few facts about breastfeeding that show the health impact it can have on the community:

• Breastmilk is the perfect nutrition and everything babies need for healthy growth and brain development, protecting them from life-threatening ailments such as respiratory infections, diarrhea, asthma and diabetes. Breastfeeding also significantly lowers the risk for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), ear infections and certain types of cancers.

• Breastmilk is a natural renewable food source that is environmentally safe and produced with no pollution, packaging or waste. It is estimated that more than 4000 L of water are needed to produce 1 kg of breastmilk substitute powder.

• Production of formula creates tons of garbage and waste products that fill our landfill sites and increase greenhouse gas emissions, accelerating global warming and pollution.

• No electricity is used to produce breast milk and it requires no fuel to be transported.

• Exclusive Breastfeeding reduces hunger and poverty worldwide.

• Families worldwide spend an estimated $54 billion dollars annually purchasing formula. Breastmilk is produced for free and is the exact perfect food for the newborn baby.