Illinois Breastfeeding Blueprint Highlights
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For more information please visit: www.ilbreastfeedingblueprint.org BLUEPRINT ILLINOIS BREASTFEEDING A PLAN FOR CHANGE BLUEPRINT ILLINOIS BREASTFEEDING A PLAN FOR CHANGE A collaboration of HealthConnect One, the Illinois Department of Human Services and the University of Illinois School of Public Health
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A summary of 2011 findings and recommendations to support breastfeeding moms in Illinois, at the hospital, at work, and in the community.
Transcript of Illinois Breastfeeding Blueprint Highlights
For more information please visit:
www.ilbreastfeedingblueprint.org
BLUEPRINTI LLINOIS BREASTFEEDING
A P L A N F O R C H A N G E
BLUEPRINTI LLINOIS BREASTFEEDING
A P L A N F O R C H A N G E
A collaboration of
HealthConnect One,
the Illinois Department of
Human Services and
the University of Illinois
School of Public Health
BLUEPRINTI LLINOIS BREASTFEEDING
A P L A N F O R C H A N G E
Breastfeeding is a critical resource for healththat exists in all communities. It may be themost important choice a mother can makewhen her baby is born. But in many areas ofIllinois, both urban neighborhoods and ruralcommunities, breastfeeding is far from thenorm. Though Illinois’ breastfeeding rateshave increased, our progress is incomplete.There are important differences inbreastfeeding rates between low-income andhigher-income families, and between racialand ethnic groups. Some mothers have theinformation and support to choose tobreastfeed their babies, and some do not.
In 2008, HealthConnect One, the IllinoisDepartment of Human Services, and the University of Illinois at Chicago School ofPublic Health committed to a multi-yeareffort to plan for strategic change in the waywe support breastfeeding in Illinois. In a timewhen resources are shrinking, we must actnow. Every mother needs the support tochoose breastfeeding.
Breastfeeding Initiation
Breastfeeding to 6 Months
Breastfeeding to 12 Months
Exclusive Breastfeeding to 3 Months
Exclusive Breastfeeding to 6 Months
Percent of Live Births Occurring at Baby Friendly Facilities
Percent of breastfed Infants Receiving Formula Before 2 Days of Age
Illinois2007 (%)
70.2
36.0
16.4
27.9
11.2
1.3
28.1
The 2010 CDC Breastfeeding Report Card:Data from the National Immunization Survey
≥ 81.9
≥ 60.5
≥ 34.1
≥ 44.3
≥ 23.7
≥ 8.1
≤ 15.6
HP2020 Objective (%)
2
NeedBreast milk is the biological norm: breasts aredesigned to produce milk for infants. Eachmother's body produces milk specificallydesigned for her infant. The benefits ofbreastfeeding and the risks of not breastfeedinghave been established by an overwhelmingbody of evidence, and are summarized in the2011 The Surgeon General’s Call to Action toSupport Breastfeeding. With this solid base ofevidence, we must do a better job of ensuringthat every mother has the information andsupport to breastfeed.
DataData drives policy. If we are to reach the pointwhere all mothers have the information andsupport to make the choice to successfullybreastfeed their babies, we need to know thefull picture of breastfeeding in Illinois. Thedata tell the story of who is or is notbreastfeeding, for how long, and what factorscontribute to success.
Healthy People (HP) is a national initiative forpromoting and improving the health of allAmericans. Using data from 2007, the Centersfor Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)provided a snapshot of how Illinois is doingcompared to the new Healthy People 2020objectives for breastfeeding. We can see wehave more to do to help Illinois womenbreastfeed successfully.
It is also important to understand more aboutthe women who breastfeed and those who donot so we can target community resources in asensible way. To do this, our report describesbreastfeeding separately by race/ethnicity andby income level.
The American Academy of Pediatrics
recommends that infants be breastfed for at
least one year and preferably for longer. In
Illinois, many women fall far short of
meeting this recommendation.
More than half of low income black and
white women had stopped breastfeeding
before 3 months. About 4 in 10 Hispanic
and Asian low income women stopped
breastfeeding before 3 months.
Among higher income women, about 3 in
10 black, white, and Hispanic women had
stopped breastfeeding before 3 months, and
one-quarter of Asian women had stopped.
DURATION: How Long Do Illinois Women Breastfeed Their Infants?
The racial/ethnic disparity among higher
income women was quite small and the
Healthy People 2020 objective for
breastfeeding initiation was met by all higher
income groups in Illinois.
Among low income women, on the other
hand, there are wide racial/ethnic disparities,
with black low income women being the least
likely to breastfeed.
It is also important to see that for both black
and white low income women the rate of
breastfeeding falls far below the Healthy
People 2020 objective.
INITIATION: How Many Illinois Women Start BreastfeedingTheir Infants?
Figure 4. The Percent of Illinois Women Who StartedBreastfeeding Their Infants, 2004-2008 Combined,By Race/Ethnicity and Income Level
%
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Low Income Higher Income
9287
98
AsianBlackWhite Hispanic HP 2020 Objective
64
52
9085 84
Figure 4. The Percent of Illinois Women Who StartedBreastfeeding Their Infants, 2004-2008 Combined, By Race/Ethnicity and Income Level
EXCLUSIVITY: How Long Do Illinois Women Feed Their Infants Only Breast Milk?
Figure 15. Breastfeeding-Related Practices in Illinois Hospitals, 2008
%
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
BF inhospital
BF infirst hour
ExclusiveBF in
Hospital
BF supportphone#
Rooming-In Total to BF“on demand”
Formulagift pack
Pacifieruse
6166
84
71
50
72
34
82
Promotes BreastfeedingDiscourages
Breastfeeding
HOSPITAL PRACTICE
Figure 15. Breastfeeding Related Practices in Illinois Hospitals, 2008
The American Academy of Pediatricsrecommends that infants be fed onlybreast milk for the first six months oflife. Racial/ethnic and incomedisparities almost disappear when welook at exclusive breastfeeding, but this“equality” is for the wrong reason.Fewer than 2 in 5 women werefeeding their babies only breast milkat 3 months regardless of theirrace/ethnicity or income.
Figure 9. The Percent of Illinois Women Breastfeeding≥12 Weeks Among Women who Started Breastfeeding,2004-2008 Combined, By Race/Ethnicity and Income Level
%
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Low Income Higher Income
6963
75
AsianBlackWhite Hispanic
4945
5856
70
Figure 9. The Percent of Illinois Women Breastfeeding ≥12Weeks Among Women who Started Breastfeeding,2004-2008 Combined, By Race/Ethnicity and Income Level
Figure 14. The Percent of Illinois Women Exclusively Breastfeeding≥12 Weeks Among Women who Started Breastfeeding,2004-2008 Combined, By Race/Ethnicity & Income Level
%
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Low Income Higher Income
2924
28
AsianBlackWhite Hispanic
26
172322
38
Figure 14. The Percent of Illinois Women Exclusively Breastfeeding≥12 Weeks Among Women who Started Breastfeeding, 2004-2008 Combined, By Race/Ethnicity & Income Level
How Common are Breastfeeding Related Practices inIllinois Hospitals?
Six hospital practices were shown to promotebreastfeeding among Illinois mothers:n Rooming-in
n Giving the mother a breastfeeding support
phone number
n Breastfeeding in the hospital
n Encouraging breastfeeding on-demand
n Beginning breastfeeding within an hour after delivery
n Giving the infant only breast milk in the hospital
Two hospital practices were shown todiscourage breastfeeding among Illinoismothers:n Giving formula gift packs
n Pacifier use
RECOMMENDATIONS
We begin with the mindset that breastfeeding is the new “normal.” All mothers, except for avery few, can and will breastfeed their babies.
We are certainly not there yet. We havemade much progress in our state, but thedata show us how far we need to go. Thestrategy recommendations come directlyfrom this analysis.
This shorter version of the Blueprint providesone recommendation for each area of focus. Forall of the recommendations, please visitwww.ilbreastfeedingblueprint.org.
Hospitals, Clinics and HealthProfessionalsEncourage every maternity hospital in Illinois towork toward achieving Baby-Friendlydesignation (implementation of the Ten Stepsto Successful Breastfeeding for Hospitals).
State, County and LocalGovernment Prioritize funding for breastfeeding in thosepopulations with high disparities, includingAfrican-American and low-income communities.
Community-Based Organizationsand FamiliesExpand the number of paid breastfeeding peercounselors in community and faith-basedorganizations in Illinois, and expand resourcesfor training and technical assistance to increasepeer-to-peer support.
WorkplacesEducate employers about breastfeeding laws, andthe importance of lactation support programs.
InsurersIdentify and expand private insurance coveragefor breastfeeding support, including peercounselors and lactation consultants, andbreast pumps.
Next Steps
Our work will focus on detailing, expanding, and setting priorities,benchmarking success, and developing a five-year timeline for our efforts.We will use a website, www.ilbreastfeedingblueprint.org, to coordinateinformation and activities, and engage stakeholders throughout Illinois tocollaborate on pieces of the work. We hope that this will be acollaboration across the entire state of Illinois – and that you will join us inmaking breastfeeding not just the biologic norm, but the social andcultural norm as well.
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