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Allegheny County Breastfeeding Coalition
Our mission at the Allegheny County Breastfeeding Coalition (ACBC) is to encourage and help normalize human milk feeding in every community across Allegheny County.
We are a group of stakeholders that come from all walks of life. We are parents, grandparents, community members, health care professionals, educators, reproductive health service providers, hospitals, churches, and schools. We are all united by the desire to improve the health of our communities through breastfeeding/human milk feeding.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends exclusively breastfeeding/human milk feeding through at least the first six months of a child’s life. After six months, they recommend a combination of human milk with complementary foods until the baby turns one. After that, breastfeeding/human milk feeding can continue for as long as mother/lactating parent and baby feel it is necessary.
Over 80% of birthing parents make the decision to breastfeed their infants at birth; however, by six months of age, only 20.5% of birthing parents in Allegheny County are still exclusively breastfeeding/human milk feeding. The goal of the ACBC is to make sure that parents who choose to offer their milk their babies have the support they need to do so.
Our coalition currently meets monthly to plan events, community talks, L-CERP opportunities, and support efforts aimed at promoting positive cultural shifts around breastfeeding/human milk feeding, increasing accessible support and resources, and supporting parents to achieve the AAP recommendations for infant feeding.
For more information about ACBC, and/or how to get involved in this initiative, please contact Sharon Leavitt or Kandis Mason.
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