Spring 2018

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4 Ways Churches Can Improve Maternal & Child Health

“Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, would give a stone?” (Matthew 7: 9)

1. Improve nutrition and health for

pregnant women and children

• Provide WIC information from the local health department in church and in church-related programs.

• Provide fresh fruit and vegetable vouchers to food stores through church food banks.

• Assign a mentor for pregnant women to encourage pre-natal health care and pre-natal vitamins. Mentors match women by race, culture, literacy, & faith as much as possible.

• Train intergenerational mentors to provide guidance and support to children and parents at-risk for obesity. Search the SNAP-Ed Connection website for ideas.

• Create community gardens to supply fresh vegetables. Sign up local growers to contribute excess fruit and vegetables at low/no cost.

• Create “joint use agreements” with recreation departments, civic clubs, etc. to use church and school grounds/facilities for exercise.

• Train church volunteers to conduct a Home Asthma Inventory. • Download the faith leaders’ diabetes toolkit and implement a program.

2. Encourage Breastfeeding Breastfeeding can reduce the mother’s risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer. Breastfeeding reduces the risk of a child becoming obese later in life, which can reduce the risk of many types of cancers and other health problems associated with obesity (diabetes, asthma, heart problems). Breastfeeding passes antibodies from mom to infant, strengthening a baby’s immune system. These antibodies reduce the risk of cancer, ear infections, digestive problems, SIDS (sleep-related infant death) and respiratory problems and reduce the chance of developing allergies. Breastfeeding can increase a child’s IQ by 3-4 points. Breastfeeding strengthens the mother-infant bonding.

• Apply for Louisiana’s designation as a Breastfeeding-friendly Workplace

• Make your church and church buildings a Well Spot

All links to resources for each point above can be found at www.breadorstones.com/resources

For More Information and Additional Resources Visit Our Website at

www.breadorstones.com/resources

3. Promote Smoking Cessation Smoking, and exposure to second hand smoke, increases the risk of infant mortality, preterm births and low birth weight babies. Research shows that combining 3 or more of these strategies has the best chance of successful smoking cessation. • Distribute Health Department stop smoking information at church and

sign smokers up at the free 1-800-Quit-Now Quitline hotline. • Identify a social media app with stop smoking reminders and Quitline

referral information and promote smoking cessation on Facebook and your church web page.

• Refer qualified people for free stop smoking medical interventions such as nicotine patches, counseling, doctor’s visits.

• Begin a campaign to stop second hand smoke where children live, gather and play.

• Implement a Health and Faith program in your church. • Download the Faith Leader’s Toolkit with links to various

denominations’ smoking cessation programs and implement one.

4. Increase immunizations Immunizations provide protection not only to the person receiving the vaccination, but also to those who cannot be vaccinated due to age, illness, or allergies. The risk of natural infection outweighs the risk of immunization for every recommended vaccine. Delaying or declining vaccinations has led to outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases and may jeopardize public health. • Distribute Health Department information about immunizations. • Educate church members about where to get children’s immunizations

and who pays. • Promote flu and shingles shots, where to get them, and who pays. • Set up a flu and shingle shot day at church with a local pharmacy. • Require up-to-date immunizations at church schools and day cares. • For additional suggestions call or visit: Partners for Healthy Babies

(1-800-251-BABY).

All links to resources for each point above can be found at www.breadorstones.com/resources