WIC and MHSI Network celebrates National Breastfeeding Awareness Month

WI Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Nutrition Program says: #LetsLatch

August has been designated as Breastfeeding Awareness Month. The national breastfeeding campaign, “WIC Breastfeeding Support: Learn Together, Grow Together” centers around a mother’s journey while considering and initiating providing breastmilk for her baby. The goal along the journey is to ensure mothers are given support, encouragement and resources. Breastmilk is nature’s perfect food for giving all infants a healthy start in life. WIC acknowledges that not all breastfeeding journeys will be smooth, and some mothers will have challenges along the way. The WIC breastfeeding support team which consists of Registered Dietitian Nutritionists (RDN) and trained WIC breastfeeding peer counselors plays a crucial role in helping mothers navigate the winding roads on their journey.

Milwaukee Health Services, Inc. (MHSI) provides WIC services for families at their MLK Heritage Health Center location. One of the cornerstone programs to highlight this month involved the role of their WIC breastfeeding peer counselor, Johnna Tidwell. Success along the journey comes in many ways but most recently by way of written feedback from a mother who initially had concerns about exclusively breastfeeding and having enough milk to store for future use; she was so appreciative for the guidance and support received from Johnna. As evidence of her success, she shared a picture of the abundance of milk she was able to freeze for future use; what a proud and amazing mommy moment! To learn more about the WIC program, eligibility requirements or to enroll, visit www.wicmomstrong.com

Submitted by Angelia Wilks-Tate, MS RDN CD CLS. WIC Project Director – MLK Heritage Health Center 414-267-6650 awilks_ tate@mhsi.org