A while back I wrote about World Breastfeeding Week which is celebrated most places August 1-7. Now that August is just around the corner, I want to give you an update.

Each year, the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA) establishes a theme. This year the theme, “Breastfeeding: The 1st Hour-Save ONE million babies!” emphasizes the importance of breastfeeding within the first 1-2 hours after birth.

The International Lactation Consultant Association (ILCA) joins WABA in encouraging breastfeeding soon after birth. ILCA invites mothers, healthcare providers, and the community to give special consideration to the first hours of a baby’s life and the environment into which babies are born. Thus ILCA’s focus this year is Welcome Baby Softly.

How do we welcome baby softly? By keeping in mind that babies are born ready to connect with their mothers right after birth in some pretty amazing ways. Babies use all five of their senses to begin to learn about their mother, their family, and the world.

How do we set the table for this learning from the first moments of birth? By keeping mother and baby together. A baby’s sense of sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste are best employed when baby is skin-to-skin with mom. Babies feel, hear, smell, and see mom-putting this all together allows babies to orient themselves to the breast and taste mom’s milk. It’s a pretty neat process to watch. Some babies will make their way to the breast within the first hour of birth if given the opportunity, while others take a bit longer.

It’s important to recognize that “baby time” is very different from our own concept of time. Babies aren’t born with wrist watches. All they know is that when they’re skin-to-skin with mom, all is right with the world.

“Protect the environment and the behavior will follow” is a quote from Dr. Nils Bergman, a physician in South Africa who knows the importance of keeping mothers and babies together. By doing all we can to keep mother and baby together, we are increasing their chance to hit the ground running with regard to breastfeeding and bonding.

Welcome baby softly, during World Breastfeeding Week and every other week of the year!

For more information on World Breastfeeding Week, please visit WABA, ILCA, and La Leche League.