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Bay County To Celebrate World Breastfeeding Week With Weekend 'Latch On' Event

A mother with her baby in a nursery
Nikolay Osmachko
/
Pexels

This week is National Breastfeeding Week, and Bay County health officials will be holding an event this weekend to promote breastfeeding and help mothers.

Saturday’s “Celebration and Big Latch On” event will run from 9:30 in the morning to noon at the Springfield Community Church in Panama City. Bay County Health is partnering with several breastfeeding groups in the Panhandle for this event. Agency spokeswoman Heather Kretzer says events like these are important for mothers and babies.

“This year’s theme for World Breastfeeding Week is “Breastfeeding: Foundation of Life!” Breastfed infants have a lower rate of infections, asthma, obesity later in life and also SIDS—which is Sudden Infant Deaths Syndrome,” she said. “There’s also health benefits for the mothers. They have a reduced risk of breast cancer, ovarian cancer and postpartum depression.”

August is also National Breastfeeding Month, and Kretzer says health officials encourage employers and child care providers to be “Breastfeeding Friendly.” There are 11 total in Bay County that have this distinction.

For more news updates, follow Sascha Cordner on Twitter: @SaschaCordner.

Sascha Cordner has more than ten years of public radio experience. It includes working at NPR member station WUFT-FM in Gainesville for several years. She's worked in both radio and TV, serving in various capacities as a reporter, producer and anchor. She's also a graduate of the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in telecommunications. She is the recipient of 15 awards from the Associated Press, Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), and Edward R. Murrow. Her award-winning stories include her coverage on the infamous “Dozier School for Boys” and a feature titled "Male Breast Cancer: Lost in the Sea of Pink." Currently, Sascha serves as the host and producer of local and state news content for the afternoon news program "All Things Considered" at WFSU. Sascha primarily covers criminal justice and social services issues. When she's not reporting, Sascha likes catching up on her favorite TV shows, singing and reading. Follow Sascha Cordner on Twitter:@SaschaCordner.