Working Together for Health: La Leche League International Marks World Health Day

Schaumburg, IL (April 2006)—In celebration of World Health Day, April 7, 2006, La Leche League International (LLLI) has produced a document available in English, Italian and Spanish that demonstrates how LLLI, a mother-to-mother breastfeeding support organization, can help to build healthy communities and alleviate the growing worldwide shortage of healthcare workers.

“Working Together for Health” is the theme of World Health Day 2006. By providing breastfeeding information and support, LLLI supports breastfeeding mothers and works with others involved in health services around the world.

• Healthier people require fewer healthcare workers—breastfeeding is the cornerstone of world health.
• La Leche League Leaders are well-trained and accredited in the art and science of lactation.
• LLLI is a recognized authority on breastfeeding and provides information and support for mothers and those in the healthcare community.
• La Leche League Leaders know how to work as part of a team of healthcare workers. Healthcare workers typically have a plethora of health messages; LLL Leaders have the experience, knowledge, and time to focus on breastfeeding.

In recognizing the theme of working together for health, the paper (available for downloading and distribution in English and Spanish) points out that the health of a community begins with a community of health. A community of health begins with the simple, time-tested, readily available, low-cost and largely untapped resource of human milk.

Even though breastfeeding is natural, it is a learned art. La Leche League International, a non-profit organization, has been doing its part in the effort of helping mothers to breastfeed for nearly a half-century. The strength of the LLLI approach is based on mother-to-mother support. For information about breastfeeding or to find an LLL Group, available in approximately sixty countries worldwide, visit the LLLI Web site at www.lalecheleague.org

Page last edited Sun Oct 14 09:32:34 UTC 2007.