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1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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2 | WHEREAS, Scientific research demonstrates that good | ||||||
3 | nutrition beginning in utero and extending throughout
the first | ||||||
4 | year of life is critical to the healthy growth and development | ||||||
5 | of infants and that breastfeeding is the
best form of infant | ||||||
6 | nutrition by providing certain health benefits for both the | ||||||
7 | mother and child; and | ||||||
8 | WHEREAS, The United States Surgeon General and the American | ||||||
9 | Academy of Pediatrics recommend babies
be exclusively fed with | ||||||
10 | breast milk for the first 6 months of life, and continue on | ||||||
11 | with breast milk through the
first year of life; and | ||||||
12 | WHEREAS, Healthy People 2020, an initiative that comprises | ||||||
13 | science-based, ten-year national objectives to
improve the | ||||||
14 | health of all Americans, administered under the U.S. Department | ||||||
15 | of Health and Human Services,
aims to increase the percentage | ||||||
16 | of women initiating breastfeeding to 81.9% and still continuing | ||||||
17 | to
breastfeed when their newborn is 6 months of age to 60.6%; | ||||||
18 | and | ||||||
19 | WHEREAS, It is a mother's choice in how she feeds her baby, | ||||||
20 | and the choice is often made based on the
best feeding option | ||||||
21 | for her infant given her and her family's life circumstance, | ||||||
22 | including familial, cultural, and
community issues as well as |
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1 | based on barriers to breastfeeding, including returning to | ||||||
2 | work, medical difficulties,
and lack of breastfeeding support; | ||||||
3 | and | ||||||
4 | WHEREAS, The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Support | ||||||
5 | Breastfeeding, the American Academy of Pediatrics,
and other | ||||||
6 | public health organizations do promote breastfeeding goals, | ||||||
7 | and some go beyond this to promote
other dietary guidance for | ||||||
8 | feeding an infant under age 2 or identify what a mother should | ||||||
9 | do if she cannot
or chooses not to breastfeed, or needs to | ||||||
10 | supplement breastfeeding; and | ||||||
11 | WHEREAS, An example of this is provided in the U.S. | ||||||
12 | Department of Agriculture Food & Nutrition Service
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13 | publication, "Feeding Your Baby in the first Year", which gives | ||||||
14 | participants in the Women, Infant, and Children
(WIC) food | ||||||
15 | program a basic overview of the best sources of nutrition for | ||||||
16 | their babies in the first year, starting
with breastfeeding, | ||||||
17 | including infant formula if needed, following with the | ||||||
18 | introduction of solid foods; and
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19 | WHEREAS, Infant nutrition research has generated a range of | ||||||
20 | iron-fortified infant formulas (as well as specialized
infant | ||||||
21 | formulas for premature babies and for those babies with medical | ||||||
22 | conditions needing sustenance to
survive and thrive) that | ||||||
23 | address a critical need in providing a safe and nutritious |
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1 | alternative to breast milk for
mothers who are unable to | ||||||
2 | breastfeed; therefore, be it
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3 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | ||||||
4 | NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
5 | we acknowledge the
role of optimal infant nutrition during the | ||||||
6 | first year of life and that new mothers require information, | ||||||
7 | guidance,
and support to provide the best nutritional start for | ||||||
8 | their babies; and be it further
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9 | RESOLVED, That we recognize the scientific research | ||||||
10 | documenting that breastfeeding is
the best form of infant | ||||||
11 | nutrition and supports breastfeeding promotion policies; and | ||||||
12 | be it further
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13 | RESOLVED, That we aspire for mothers to make informed | ||||||
14 | choices about
how to feed their infants by requiring that | ||||||
15 | mothers receive, prior to and/or after birth, complete and | ||||||
16 | balanced
information on all infant nutrition options; and be it | ||||||
17 | further
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18 | RESOLVED, That we call on the U.S. Department of Health and | ||||||
19 | Human Services to
publish and distribute maternal and infant | ||||||
20 | nutrition information approved by the U.S. Surgeon General to
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21 | mothers prior to and after birth; and be it further
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1 | RESOLVED, That we urge state health departments to | ||||||
2 | facilitate public-private
collaboration with families and | ||||||
3 | communities to increase maternal and infant nutrition | ||||||
4 | awareness, particularly
in underserved areas, and provide | ||||||
5 | access to nutritional programs for mothers and their children | ||||||
6 | beginning in
utero and throughout their first year of life; and | ||||||
7 | be it further
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8 | RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be transmitted to | ||||||
9 | the President of the United States,
the Vice-President of the | ||||||
10 | United States, members of the Illinois Delegation of the U.S. | ||||||
11 | House of Representatives, Illinois Senators Richard J. Durbin | ||||||
12 | and Mark Kirk, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health | ||||||
13 | and Human Services, the United States Surgeon
General, the | ||||||
14 | Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and other | ||||||
15 | federal and state government officials
as appropriate.
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