Cottonwood Kids Offers First Breastfeeding-Friendly Hospital Discharge Bag

Aug. 18, 2009 - PRLog -- Portsmouth, NH – The first ever national breastfeeding-friendly and natural products hospital discharge bag is now available from Cottonwood Kids. Leading medical experts agree that exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of an infant’s life and breastfeeding for 12 months provides significant health benefits for both mothers and babies. Yet many hospitals provide free formula-sponsored discharge bags to new mothers, sending a confusing message about the importance of breastfeeding.

Cottonwoods Kids is now offering an alternative to these formula discharge bags, called “Healthy Baby Bounty Bags,” in the hope of raising awareness about the importance of breastfeeding during August’s Breastfeeding Awareness Month and beyond.

“We’re proud to be offering the first and only hospital discharge gift bag that encourages and supports breastfeeding,” says Erik Maurer, President and founder of Cottonwood Kids. “Our new Healthy Baby Bounty Bags contain 100% breastfeeding support and natural product samples, coupons, resources, and more, from top brands including Lansinoh, Bravado, and Seventh Generation. We’re working with leading hospital birth centers to send a clear message about the benefits of breastfeeding, embracing the medical community’s endorsement of breastfeeding for healthier babies.”

Cottonwood Kids’ new Healthy Baby Bounty Bag will be distributed by Hospital birth centers at more than 200 hospitals nationwide, including UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, Children’s Hospital in Boston, Staten Island University Medical Center in New York City, and Exeter Hospital in New Hampshire.

“There are over 4 million babies born in America every year, and 3.5 million new mothers are given formula-sponsored discharge bags,” says Gina Ciagne, CLC, Director of Breastfeeding and Consumer Relations at Lansinoh Laboratories.  “It sends a confusing message to parents who hear the benefits but then get something that appears to be an endorsement of artificial feeding from their healthcare providers or hospital. For the first time, 300,000 new mothers will get a bag that promotes breastfeeding instead. It’s our hope that in the coming years, we’ll be able to expand this program so that every new mother can leave the hospital with all the information, knowledge, and support she needs to feed her child naturally.”

Cottonwood Kids is unique in that it:
•   Embraces the medical community’s endorsement of breastfeeding for healthier babies.
•   Empowers women to bond and share with their babies through breastfeeding.
•   Is green – our bags contain recycled materials and are recyclable.
•   Contains product samples and coupons from leading companies—including Lansinoh, Bravado Designs, Bebe Aulait, and Seventh Generation.
•   Produces bags that are WHO Code compliant—completely focused on the benefits of breastfeeding, with no nipple substitutes, bottles, or formula samples included.
•   Was started by a dad of three young daughters, who champions the health of children nationwide.

Cottonwood Kids supports the medical community’s breastfeeding recommendations:

•   The World Health Organization (WHO), American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), and the U.S. Surgeon General recommend that babies be fed with breast milk exclusively for the first six months of life, breastfed for twelve months and thereafter as long as mutually desired.
•   In addition, the AAP recommends breastfeeding, promoting its many advantages, including health, nutritional, immunologic, developmental, psychological, social, economic, and environmental benefits.
•   U.S. Department of Health and Human Services states that breastfeeding is associated with a lower risk of ear infections, stomach viruses, severe lower respiratory infections, atopic dermatitis, asthma, obesity, types 1 and 2 diabetes, childhood leukemia, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), and necrotizing enterocolitis in infants. Breastfeeding mothers have a lower risk of type 2 diabetes and breast and ovarian cancer.
•   The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) states breastfeeding is the preferred method of feeding for newborns and infants, and they urge health professionals to support women in choosing to breastfeed their infants.
•   The Center for Disease Control (CDC) is committed to increasing breastfeeding rates throughout the United States and to promoting and supporting optimal breastfeeding practices toward the ultimate goal of improving the public’s health.

About Cottonwood Kids

Cottonwood Kids is owned and operated by a busy father of three young children.  Cottonwood Kids produces an innovative line of custom products that cater to the needs of new families and meet the objectives of hospitals’ birthing centers. The company’s mission is to assist hospital Labor and Delivery centers in promoting their brands within their communities by providing creative custom gifts that support and empower new families. For more information, please visit www.cottonwood-kids.com.