Hotline to help new mothers

Ontario boosts breastfeeding support with 24-hour service

Breast is best. That’s the message from Health Minister Deb Matthews as she unveiled a $2.5 million plan Monday to boost breastfeeding.

“Breast is best for baby, breast is best for mom, and the evidence is very clear that breast is best for a healthy society,” Matthews said at a health clinic in Toronto’s Liberty Village. “We know that we can get more women doing what we want them to do — breastfeeding — if we provide the right supports for them.”

Matthews said while about 90 per cent of mothers want to breastfeed their babies, only 60 per cent are doing so upon leaving hospital after giving birth.

Because breastfeeding improves development and reduces the risk of obesity and the incidence of illness in a child for the rest of its life, it’s a win-win for everyone, she said.

That’s why the provincial government will soon launch a 24-hour hotline for new mothers to help guide them through the sometimes difficult early days and nights of breastfeeding. Children and Youth Services Teresa Piruzza said it was a smart investment of health dollars.

“Experts tell us that the first few years of our lives have a major impact on our health as adolescents, teenagers and in adult life,” said Piruzza.

Dr. Jack Newman, one of the world’s leading breastfeeding gurus, praised the initiative.

“Unfortunately in Ontario today, mothers have significant difficulties with breastfeeding because they cannot get the best start from day one and they cannot always find help when they need it,” he said, predicting the new measures “will help moms get the support they need to breastfeed successfully.”