Breastfeeding

Mums can breastfeed everywhere in the Dudley borough. Whether it’s in the town centre, enjoying the sunshine in the park, waiting to pick up the little ones at the school gate, at the shops, or just simply waiting for a bus, breastfeeding is a completely natural thing to do.

Breastfeeding provides all the nutrition a baby needs for the first six months and also helps build a strong emotional bond between a mum and her baby. Breast milk also helps boost a baby’s ability to fight illness and infection by passing on the mother’s immune defences. Babies who are not breastfed are more likely to get diarrhoea and respiratory infections. It is not uncommon for mums to experience challenges with breastfeeding and these problems can often be unanticipated, meaning that when they occur mums can tend to give up and instead switch to formula feeding.

Breastfeeding Friend from Start4Life

There are a range of digital offerings to help guide new mums through their first weeks of breastfeeding and beyond, providing help at any time of the day or night and complementing the support and advice from health care professionals and breastfeeding specialists:

• Try the Breastfeeding Friend from Start4Life available on Amazon Alexa, Google Home and Assistant, or on Facebook Messenger
• Visit the Start4Life website for helpful information. You can also sign up to receive weekly emails and videos with advice about pregnancy, birth and parenthood.

Introducing solid foods

Introducing your baby to solid foods, often called weaning on to foods, should start when your baby is around six months old.