The support your patients need

WIC Breastfeeding Peer Counselorsfor breastfeeding success

Peer counselorsAn essential part of your patient’s healthcare team

Help your patients get the most out of their breastfeeding experience. Refer mutual clients to WIC breastfeeding

peer counselors for free information and support.

WIC breastfeeding peer counselors are:

i Professionally trained with Texas Department of State Health Services WIC Peer Counselor Program curriculum

i Carefully chosen for their own breastfeeding experience

i Employed by the WIC Program to assist and encourage pregnant and breastfeeding mothers

“Peer counselors are here six hours a day, and it takes so much pressure off the nurses. I love them and so does the staff.”

B r e n da D. , D i r ec to r o f C h i l d b i rt h S e rv i c e s at E n n i s R eg i o n a l M e d i c a l C e n t e r

Peer counselorsProven to help moms successfully breastfeed

Peer counselors are more than just support for your patients; they are your partner in helping and encouraging

mothers to breastfeed. When you refer mutual clients, WIC peer counselors will:

i Teach basic breastfeeding skills to new moms

i Educate mothers on the benefits of breastfeeding for both mom and baby

i Share research-based breastfeeding information, best practices and their own valuable insight

i Make appropriate referrals to physicians, hospitals, lactation consultants and other providers when needed

i Provide clinic and phone consults

i Help with breast pumps as needed

i Make hospital and home visits (where available)

Research has shown a significant increase in the initiation and duration of breastfeeding with peer counselor intervention.

Breast milk i The best prescription for babiesi Protects against obesity and diabetes

i Keeps babies healthy and strengthens immune systems

i Protects from gastrointestinal trouble, respiratory problems and ear infections

i Provides extra benefits for preemies and reduces incidence of NEC

i Enhances cognitive development

i May protect from childhood leukemia

i May reduce risk of developing allergies

i May reduce risk of asthma

In a study of two groups of pregnant women who were already planning to breastfeed, 93 percent of mothers with peer counselor support initiated breastfeeding,

and 77 percent of those moms were exclusively breastfeeding. In the group without peer counselors, only 70 percent of the women chose to breastfeed,

and only 40 percent practiced exclusive breastfeeding. The mothers with peer counselor support breastfed twice as long as the mothers without support.

K r i s t i n , N . , A b r a m s o n , R . , & D u b l i n , P. ( 1 9 94 ) . E f f ec t s o f p e e r co u n s e lo r s o n b r e a s t f e e d i n g i n i t i at i o n . jo u r n a l o f h u m a n l ac tat i o n , 1 0 ( 1 ) : 1 1 - 1 5 .

Breastfeeding i The best prescription for momsi Promotes weight loss, burning up to 600 calories per day

i Produces hormones that can lower stress levels

i Reduces postpartum bleeding

i Reduces risk of breast and ovarian cancers

i Saves money

i Reduces absenteeism at work

Researchers at Iowa State University concluded that peer counselors can increase initiation and duration of breastfeeding. In their study 82 percent of

mothers with a peer counselor decided to breastfeed their babies, while only 31 percent of mothers who did not meet with a peer counselor breastfed.

S c h a f e r , E . , Vo g e l , M . K . , Vi eg a s , S . , & H au s a f u s , C . ( 1 9 9 8 ) . Vo lu n t e e r p e e r co u n s e lo r s i n c r e a s e b r e a s t f e e d i n g d u r at i o n a m o n g

r u r a l low- i n co m e wo m e n . B i rt h , 2 5 ( 2 ) : 1 0 1 - 6 .

Help us help your patientsWhen you talk, your patients listen, and as their healthcare provider, no one’s input on breastfeeding will be more

important than yours. With your encouragement, your pre- and post-natal patients will choose to breastfeed and

reap its many rewards.

Studies among populations traditionally less likely to breastfeed have shown that provider encouragement increased

breastfeeding initiation by more than threefold among low-income, young and less educated women, by nearly fivefold among

black women and by nearly elevenfold among single women.

L u , M . , e t a l . ( 2 0 0 1 ) . Prov i d e r e n co u r ag e m e n t o f b r e a s t- f e e d i n g : e v i d e n c e f ro m a n at i o n a l s u rv e y.

O b s t e t r i c s & G y n eco lo g y, 9 7 ( 2 ) : 2 9 0 – 9 5 .

www.breastmilkcounts.com

Texas WIC Peer Counselor Program proudly serving Texas WIC Participants since 1991. This institution is an equal opportunity provider. ©2010 Texas Department of State Health Services, Nutrition Services Section. All rights reserved.

Refer mutual clients to WIC Breastfeeding Peer Counselors

Enhance the expert care you provide by prescribing breastfeeding for your patients.

Refer mutual clients to your local WIC Program for free mother-to-mother breastfeeding support today.

Or call 1-800-514-MOMS (6667)

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