BURLINGTON – The Alamance County WIC Program will host a Breastfeeding Challenge on Saturday, September 29, at the Civitan Shelter in Burlington City Park, as a part of the Quintessence Global Breastfeeding Challenge. Activities will begin at 10:00 A.M. with limited free food, games, activities, and giveaways for participants. The official “latch on” time will be 11:00 A.M.
This fun event is a challenge to see which geographic area has the most breastfeeding babies “latched on” at 11:00 A.M. local time. Mothers and children at sites across the United States, Canada, and other countries around the world will compete to set the record for the most infants breastfeeding at one time.
This is the second year, the WIC program has participated in the challenge. Last year, 23 local mothers participated in the challenge and in all 75 people attended the event to support breastfeeding. Worldwide in 2011, there were 4,646 children in 16 countries who took part in the Breastfeeding Challenge. The Breastfeeding Challenge is one strategy to help spread the word globally that breastfeeding is normal and an important strategy for child and maternal health.
“This is just one more way for us to celebrate breastfeeding,” says WIC Breastfeeding Coordinator and lactation consultant Catherine Cunningham. “The Alamance County WIC Program has had three breastfeeding peer counselors on staff for well over two years now and through their work we have seen improvements in the percent of women who breastfeed. We have become better known in the community as a breastfeeding friendly program. We strive to educate pregnant woman on breastfeeding and support them as they enter their breastfeeding experience.”
For more information about the Quintessence Breastfeeding Challenge, visit the challenge website at www.babyfriendly.ca or contact Cunningham at (336) 570-6475. The Alamance County WIC Program is an equal opportunity provider.