FLEMING ISLAND – The Florida Department of Health in Clay County Women, Infants, and Children Program will host a Community Baby Shower in celebration of World Breastfeeding Week. The Community Baby Shower will be held Aug. 3 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at DOH-Clay’s Fleming Island new location at 1845 Town Center Blvd., Suite 465, on Fleming Island.

The event will include special guests from Ascension St. Vincent’s Clay, Healthy Start, Doula Nayo, Episcopal Children’s Services, Safe Kids, North Florida OB/GYN and others. There will be raffles, games, food, music, and giveaways.

August is National Breastfeeding Month and is comprised of four week-long observances which include World Breastfeeding Week, Indigenous Milk Medicine Week, Asian American Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Breastfeeding Week and Black Breastfeeding Week. Indigenous Milk Medicine Week is celebrated Aug. 8-14, and encourages Native breastfeeding experiences, reclaiming traditional feeding practices and body sovereignty.

This year’s theme is “Strengthening our Traditions: From Birth and Beyond.” Asian American Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Breastfeeding Week begins August 15 and runs through August 24. This year’s theme is “Reclaiming Our Traditions”. Black Breastfeeding Week begins Aug. 25-31. The Theme is “10 Years, A New Foundation.”

The theme is based on lactation support that is built on racial equity, cultural empowerment, and community engagement. In addition to being a traditional means of providing nutrition, breastfeeding is an important tool to address food insecurity and poverty and improve the life-long good health and well-being of women and their children. Research shows that when compared to formula-fed infants, breastfed infants have a reduced risk of:

• Infections such as ear infections and gastrointestinal infections (diarrhea/vomiting)

• Asthma

• Obesity

• Diabetes

• SIDS

Breastfeeding is also beneficial to mothers as well – when compared to mothers who don’t breastfeed, mothers who breastfeed have a reduced risk of:

• High blood pressure

• Type 2 diabetes

• Breast and ovarian cancer

• Postpartum depression

“DOH-Clay is committed to supporting breast and chest feeding and reducing disparities in breastfeeding initiation and duration rates,” said Heather Huffman, Administrator for the Department of Health in Clay County.

Huffman, an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant, leads DOH - Clay’s drive to promote breastfeeding as a vital health activity. “DOH-Clay WIC Program offers a wide variety of education, resources and staff to help pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers and children up to the age of five including access to Registered Dietitians, Certified Lactation Counselors and Breastfeeding Peer Counselors, who provide mother-to-mother basic breastfeeding education and support to pregnant and breastfeeding moms.”

For more information about DOH – Clay’s WIC program, call (904) 529-2800, option 3, or visit http://www.floridahealth.gov/programs-and-services/wic/index.html.

To learn more about National Breastfeeding Month and the benefits of breastfeeding visit www.usbreastfeeding.org, www.llli.org or www.flbreastfeeding.org.

WIC is an equal opportunity provider.