La Leche League (LLL) in the USA World Breastfeeding Week Celebrations encompass five months of events and activities to raise breastfeeding awareness and to fundraise to support breastfeeding in the USA. These celebrations highlight the mission of La Leche League in our communities and among those we know.  If you are new to WBW Celebrations, learn how to get started here.

In conjunction with the Olympics in August, the theme for LLL in the USA 2008 WBWC is Mother Support: Going for the Gold. These celebrations recognize the importance of supporting mothers so they can achieve the gold standard of infant feeding: breastfeeding exclusively for six months, and providing appropriate complementary foods with continued breastfeeding for up to two years or beyond.

Even as young athletes can only emerge from a healthy start on life, there is no question that optimal infant and young child feeding is essential for optimal growth and development.

What is World Breastfeeding Week?

World Breastfeeding Week (WBW) is August 1st - 7th and celebrates the signing of the Innocenti Declaration, produced and adopted in 1990 by participants at the WHO/UNICEF meeting on "Breastfeeding in the 1990s: A Global Initiative on the Protection, Promotion and Support of Breastfeeding." The document lists the benefits of breastfeeding, plus global and governmental goals. World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated in 120 countries on various dates.

This year we focus on supporting women in their efforts to do what is most important for the health and survival of their children through the best and most cost-effective intervention: early and exclusive breastfeeding.

You can "go for the gold" when you --

• give a mother the phone number of an LLL Leader.
• tell a first-time breastfeeding mother she is doing just fine.
• bring the new mother a nutrious snack and a big glass of water.
• as an employer, accommodate a mother's need to pump with a private comfortable space.
• as the baby's father, intercede with family and friends so that mother and baby can feel confident
• write to legislators to support the enactment of laws supporting paid maternity leave and mother-friendly workplaces.
• contact an emergency relief organization and request training to help in emergency situations, especially in breastfeeding support.
• take care of your health and nutritional needs during pregnancy and lactation.
• set up or join a network of lactation experts in your community.
• provide transportation to a mother to attend an LLL meeting or visit a lactation consultant.
• advocate for legislation that enacts the provisions of the WHO/UNICEF Code of Marketing.
• ask for support and offer support to others.

Join with us in supporting WBWC 2008 and in creating optimal conditions for mother support in all Circles of Support:  Family and Social Network, Healthcare, Workplace and Employment, Government and Legislation and Response to Crisis or Emergency. 

OBJECTIVES OF WORLD BREASTFEEDING WEEK CELEBRATIONS 2008 --
*To raise funds for La Leche League in the USA, with emphasis on local communities and the LLL Breastfeeding Helpline.
*To raise awareness that breastfeeding is the Gold Standard for Infant Feeding, that La Leche League Leaders and Groups offer breastfeeding information and support and that the lack of breastfeeding affects the child, mother, community and health care system.