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SD public defense duties shift from counties to state; SCOTUS appears skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies; Trump lawyers say he can't make bond; new scholarships aim to connect class of 2024 to high-demand jobs.

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The SCOTUS weighs government influence on social media, and who groups like the NRA can do business with. Biden signs an executive order to advance women's health research and the White House tells Israel it's responsible for the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

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Midwest regenerative farmers are rethinking chicken production, Medicare Advantage is squeezing the finances of rural hospitals and California's extreme swing from floods to drought has some thinking it's time to turn rural farm parcels into floodplains.

Colorado Celebrates the Benefits of Breastfeeding

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Wednesday, August 16, 2017   

DENVER - August is National Breastfeeding Awareness Month, and today at Cole Park in Alamosa, an event celebrates nature's solution for getting newborns all the nutrients they need.

It's co-sponsored by Valley Wide Health Systems, where Katy Baer directs its Women, Infants and Children program. Breastfeeding is good for moms and babies, she said, explaining that it helps women lose weight faster after pregnancy and results in fewer incidents of childhood obesity, cancer and other illness.

"Infants who are breastfed tend to have sort of this built-in immunity that comes from the mother's milk," she said, "and there are many, many, many things that are found in breast milk that cannot be replicated in formula."

Unlike formula, mother's milk is free, Baer said, adding that breastfeeding also helps mothers and newborns bond. The connection leads to better body-temperature regulation, and breastfeeding also stimulates neuron activity, which fuels brain development and has been shown to produce higher IQs.

Colorado law protects the right to breastfeed in public, requires workplace accommodations for nursing mothers and also allows parents to postpone jury duty.

This year's Valley Wide theme is "Find Your Village," which Baer hopes will be a beacon to expectant and new mothers who want to learn more and access resources. She said families still face social and cultural barriers that stigmatize breastfeeding.

"Many women are just so unfamiliar with it because it's hidden in our culture," she said. "We need to kind of bring it out and make it more public, make it normal in the community."

Today's Alamosa event includes activities for children, and the Colorado Breastfeeding Coalition is planning its annual Breastival on Sunday in Denver's Cheesman Park.


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