World Breastfeeding Week 1998: You did it again!!

Since 1992, World Breastfeeding Week has been celebrated in Canada and around the world. And the energy, enthusiasm and commitment is stronger and more vibrant than ever.

Across the country we saw beautiful images of breastfeeding everywhere -- in newspapers, malls, pharmacies and libraries, even on banners in downtown streets. The poster in our World Breastfeeding Week Action kit appeared on bus shelters in New Brunswick and on the river front walk in Quesnel, British Columbia.

Newspaper, radio and television items appeared, extolling both the health and economic benefits of breastfeeding. The public service announcements included in the kit were aired extensively. Happily, these announcements were produced so that they are not date-sensitive. Remind your local stations that they can be used at any time during the year!

Many coalitions used the items in the kit to create packages for doctors and other health professionals. Especially popular were our pricing activities for infant formula and our “wheel of savings” activity. Some groups re-created the wheel of savings as a large wooden mall display unit. Another group discovered that many women ask their ultrasound technician about breastfeeding, so these technicians received materials and were assisted to put up displays.

And many Canadian libraries now have a better endowed breastfeeding collection.

Restaurants continue to be popular partners for breastfeeding promotion. Many coalitions expanded their list of breastfeeding-friendly restaurants; three Guelph-area McDonalds got in on the act by celebrating the benefits of breastfeeding on their tray mats. The Wellington Dufferin Guelph Health Unit distributed the colouring page from the kit to local family eateries. Other groups, such as the Yarmouth World Breastfeeding Week Committee, held colouring contests and photo contests.

Health Units in Peterborough and Simcoe really latched on to the investment theme by involving banks and credit unions, and persuading them to hand out information and put up posters during the week.

Next year, the theme is “Breastfeeding: Learning for Life”. Our kit will focus on educating children, educating health professionals, and how breastfeeding enhances learning. Do you have ideas you would like to share? Is there something you would like to see in the kit? Please let us know. And it’s not too late for feedback on the 1998 kit. Here’s to next year!