Breastfeeding Mothers
Congratulations on choosing to breastfeed your baby!
Breastfeeding provides numerous benefits to mothers, infants, the environment and the communities of Missouri. You are doing a great job!
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services promotes, supports and protects breastfeeding as the perfect food for your baby, having all the essential nutrients and sufficient calories to meet your infant’s needs. Accordingly, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months after birth, and the continuation of breastfeeding through the first two years of life and beyond.
Resources for breastfeeding mothers
The world is full of advice for breastfeeding mothers and it can be hard to know what advice to trust. A few great resources are listed below to help you with your journey. You’ll find links to local lactation providers, as well as Missouri hospitals, businesses and child care providers that support breastfeeding. You’ll also find reliable information about how to breastfeed, why it’s good for moms and babies, what your legal rights are and what to do if you need help. Always talk to a lactation specialist if you are having trouble, as they are trained to help you and your baby get the most out of this time!
- Find a lactation specialist near you with the Missouri Breastfeeding Coalition resources map or ZipMilk.
- Explore the stages of breastfeeding and a variety of breastfeeding topics on the USDA Breastfeeding Support website.
- Search the US Breastfeeding Committee resource page designed for expecting and new parents seeking information about breastfeeding and human milk, returning to work, access to lactation supplies and how medical issues affect breastfeeding.
- Try the Ready, Set, Baby free online breastfeeding class for parents.
- If you are a participant of the Missouri WIC program, explore all the extra breastfeeding resources for you on the Breastfeeding and WIC page.
- Locate a Missouri Show-Me 5 hospital. These hospitals:
- Help mothers initiate breastfeeding within the first hour of birth.
- Practice “rooming in”, allowing infants to stay in the same room as their mothers.
- Give infants no food or drink other than breast milk, unless medically indicated.
- Do not give pacifiers or artificial nipples to breastfeeding infants.
- Foster the establishment of breastfeeding support groups and refer mothers to them on discharge.
- Locate a Breastfeeding Friendly Worksite in Missouri. These businesses were recognized for providing good support for their breastfeeding employees.
- Locate a breastfeeding friendly child care facility.
- Discover if you are eligible for WIC and additional breastfeeding resources provided by WIC.
- Feel comfortable breastfeeding in your community! See the list of Missouri businesses that have taken the Breastfeeding Welcome Here pledge.
Benefits of breastfeeding
The world is full of advice for breastfeeding mothers and it can be hard to know what advice to trust. A few great resources are listed below to help you with your journey. You’ll find links to local lactation providers, as well as Missouri hospitals, businesses and child care providers that support breastfeeding. You’ll also find reliable information about how to breastfeed, why it’s good for moms and babies, what your legal rights are and what to do if you need help. Always talk to a lactation specialist if you are having trouble, as they are trained to help you and your baby get the most out of this time!
Good for mothers
- Saves money in formula and health care costs.
- Saves time with no bottles to prepare.
- Burns calories, which helps mothers return to pre-pregnancy weight faster.
- Releases hormones that promote relaxation and bonding.
- Makes traveling easier.
- Reduces diaper odor.
- Reduces the mother’s risk for cancer, diabetes and osteoporosis.
- Helps the mother’s uterus return to its pre-pregnancy state.
- Helps prevent excessive bleeding following birth.
- Provides a special gift to baby that only their mother can provide.
Good for babies
- Made by nature to meet babies’ nutritional needs.
- Lowers incidence of infections, diarrhea and hospitalizations.
- Reduces risk of allergic reactions and asthma.
- Reduces risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
- Reduces risk of childhood cancers.
- Provides baby with the most easily digested food and reduces constipation.
- Promotes healthy growth and development.
- Reduces risk of obesity and diabetes.
- Promotes oral development.
- Transmits mother’s immunities to baby.
These are just a few of the most important benefits of breastfeeding. Read more about the benefits of human milk and breastfeeding on the Office of Women’s Health: Why Breastfeeding is Important page.
Laws
Both state and federal laws exist to protect breastfeeding women’s rights. This section provides more information about these legal protections.
State law
Mothers, with as much discretion as possible, are allowed to breastfeed her child in any public or private location where the mother is otherwise authorized to be according to the Title XII Public Health and Welfare, Section 191.918, RSMo.
Hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers that provide obstetrical care must provide new mothers with information on breastfeeding and the benefits to the child, and offer breastfeeding consultations where appropriate as determined by the attending physician according to Title XII Public Health and Welfare, Section 191.915, RSMo.
House Bill 1320 made the following revisions to the state breastfeeding law:
- The language was changed from “with as much discretion as possible” to “with discretion.”
- The act of breastfeeding in public shall not constitute sexual contact or be considered an act of public indecency.
- A municipality shall not enact an ordinance prohibiting or restricting a mother from breastfeeding.
- Any nursing mother, upon her request, and with a completed written statement from her physician, shall be excused from jury duty (Section 494.430, RSMo).
Learn more about breastfeeding laws in other states on the National Conference of State Legislatures page. Additional resources for breastfeeding in public can be found on the Women's Health website.
Federal law
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act amended Section 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act requires employers to provide reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for her nursing child. Employers are also required to provide a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public, which may be used by an employee to express breast milk.
- Basic information about this law is located on the Department of Labor’s pages: The Wage and Hour Fact Sheet #73 “Break Time for Nursing Mothers under the FLSA,” PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act webinar series and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).
- The Center for WorkLife Law has an Intro to the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act webinar training to help with understanding this law.
File a complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) is responsible for administering and enforcing some of the nation's most important worker protection laws.
WIC and Nutrition Services
Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
PO Box 570
Jefferson City, MO 65102-0570
Telephone: 573-751-6204 or
(toll-free) 800-392-8209
Fax: 573-526-1470
Email: WICinfo@health.mo.gov