The New Jersey Department of Health last week released a strategic plan to improve breastfeeding rates in the state — and to also improve supports for the practice. “Breastfeeding provides critical nutrition to infants and helps build immunity to help protect infants from infections before they build up their own immune systems,” said health commissioner Judith Persichilli, who added, “By working to strengthen supports for breastfeeding to women in all communities, we can help ensure healthier babies and mothers.”

The American Academy of Pediatrics and the World Health Organization urge exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months, followed by the introduction of complementary foods for two years and beyond. But “New Jersey breastfeeding practices lag significantly behind” those recommended goals, according to the DOH.

There’s a high rate of breastfeeding of newborns in New Jersey, but after that “all breastfeeding rates, and particularly exclusive breastfeeding rates, drop sharply in the early months.” In New Jersey, 41.2% of infants were exclusively breastfed at 3 months and only 23.5% of infants were exclusively breastfed at 6 months in 2019; the national averages were 45.3% at 3 months and 24.9% at 6 months.

“Access to paid family and medical leave is critical; new parents, including partners, must be able to take the time they need to establish and support breastfeeding and bonding. We at the Department of Labor are committed to ensuring that every worker knows their rights and has equal access to vital support programs,” said Robert Asaro-Angelo, commissioner at the Department of Labor and Workforce Development.