Cooper County WIC

09/03/2025

Not sure if you qualify for WIC benefits? Many people are surprised to find that they qualify! Look at the income guidelines to see if you are income-eligible.
https://health.mo.gov/living/families/wic/income-guidelines.php

09/02/2025

Let’s talk about waking a sleeping baby. It used to be common to recommend waking a newborn under 2 weeks old every 3 hours to feed. Why? We except babies to lose up to 7-8% of their birth weight in the first 3-4 days and then regain it by 10-14 days. Many hospital staff still recommend this with the expectation that at baby’s 2 week check up, the pediatrician would give the go ahead to let baby sleep as long as they wanted based off regained weight. This is based on research that newborns typically breastfeed a MINIMUM of 8 times in 24 hours (most breastfed babies eat 10-16 times in 24 hours). In reality, if a newborn is feeding well (pain free latch, audible swallows noted, engaged during feedings), if they are gaining weight and peeing/pooping, there’s no reason to wake them to feed. Even from birth. Babies are exhausted from labor as much as you are and sleep is a good thing to recover.

Reasons to wake a baby to feed:
⚖️Lost more than 10% of their birth weight
🍯 Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)
⚖️Struggling to gain weight
👅Not efficiently feeding due to tongue ties or an uncoordinated suck
😞Moderate to severe jaundice
🚑Certain medical conditions
💊 Side effects of certain medications is making baby drowsy

Waking a baby to eat because of feeding, jaundice, or weight concerns would be done TEMPORARILY and under the guidance of a team of health care providers. If a pediatrician is recommending to wake baby, and the goal is breastfeeding, they should refer the family to an IBCLC lactation consultant or have the family come into the office for multiple weight checks to stop waking as soon as feeding is on track. Many times a triple feeding plan would be put into place (attempt to latch, pump and supplement) to help establish milk supply and keep baby fed until baby becomes more efficient at feeding. This usually happens within the first 2-3 weeks after birth. Once baby is waking on their own, gaining weight and consistently feeding efficiently, there is no need to wake baby to feed and the triple feeding should be weaned off.

09/02/2025

September 1-7 is Workplace Lactation Week. Does your workplace support you on your breastfeeding journey? If so, you can encourage them to become a Breastfeeding Friendly Worksite! Visit https://health.mo.gov/living/families/wic/breastfeeding/worksiteinitiatives/ and fill out the application.

09/01/2025

Let’s talk about low milk supply or what I usually find is perceived low milk supply. When you think you don’t have enough milk because you’re comparing your journey or your baby to social media. Mothers may perceive babies wanting to feed more often, fussiness at the breast, and behaviors such as tugging or pulling on the breast, especially at night, as a sign that their milk is not adequate, either in quality or quantity. Signs that you have plenty of milk are:
💩 plenty of wet and dirty diapers
💕pain free latch
⚖️consistent weight gain over time

🤱🏽Baby nursing frequently does not equal low milk supply
🤱🏾Baby not settling after a feeding does not mean you have low supply
🤱🏿Occasional long, frequent, endless feeding, especially during growth spurts, are not a sign of low supply
🤱🏼Waking frequently at night and changes in sleep or nap routines are normal
🤱🏻 Breasts no longer feeling full between feedings is normal. Your body gets more efficient as time goes on. They go back to pre pregnancy size and still make plenty of milk
🤱🏾Not every one leaks. Some women never leak. Most stop leaking while still making a full supply
🤱🏼 Some never feel their let down
🤱🏽Baby fussing at the breast, pulling away, but still wanting to nurse does not mean you have low supply
🤱🏿Pumping is NEVER a good indication of your true supply as baby should be more efficient at accessing you milk (unless there is a tongue tie or oral motor weakness)
🤦🏽‍♀️It is possible for a baby to refuse the breast and still take a bottle. You can’t force a baby to latch the the breast but you can make a baby latch to a bottle.

💕If breastfeeding has been going well for several weeks or months, don’t blame the b**b as the root of your baby’s behavior unless there is a justifiable cause (like taking medications or birth control, starting your period, reducing your number of feeding or pump sessions, sleep training or changing your routine). If you do think you have low milk supply, schedule a consultation ASAP.

08/30/2025

Inspire: WIC provides breastfeeding support for moms through family, community and partner engagement by hosting prenatal breastfeeding classes for pregnant women and their support. Dads, grandparents, sisters and friends are always welcome at WIC!
https://health.mo.gov/living/families/wic/breastfeeding/breastfeedingwic/support/

08/26/2025

It’s normal to experience ni**le tenderness for the first few days after delivery. Tenderness peaks between the 3-6th days postpartum and then should resolve by the end of the second week. Any damage to the skin of the breast or ni**le should be taken care of immediately to avoid further damage or infection.

Painful breastfeeding is not normal. The first step to decreasing pain while breastfeeding is to identify what’s causing it. Usually the simplest way to reduce ni**le pain is to make sure baby is in the right position. Baby’s tummy should be touching mom’s body, with the belly button touching. Baby’s arms hug the breast and their face comes straight to the ni**le. Baby’s Head should be straight, with their ear, shoulder and hip making a straight line. Their head should be slightly extended backward to allow the nose to pop up off the breast. Pulling baby in closer through the shoulders usually helps get a deeper latch. If nursing is still painful, even with careful attention to latch and positioning, there may be other things at play. Usually there is a tongue/lip tie, tension in baby’s body like from a long labor and delivery (greater than 24 hour labor and/or more than 4 hours of pushing), or tension on baby’s body from intrauterine position (sitting really low for a large portion of pregnancy or being breech). Having the tongue tie released and/or doing tummy time and bodywork on baby should resolve the pain. If you’re working on release and baby’s body, consider the temporary use of a ni**le shield to protect ni**les, until damage is resolved and the underlying cause of the damage is managed.

**lepain **ledamage

08/25/2025

Most pumps come with fl**ges in the box… but here’s the secret: those are usually not your size. 🙃

➡️ Pumping with the wrong fl**ge can lead to pain, ni**le damage, clogged ducts, low output, or feeling like your pump “just doesn’t work.”

The truth? Fl**ge fit is personal.
•It’s not about your bra size.
•It’s not about what came in the box.
•It’s about the measurement of your ni**le AND how your body responds during a pump session.

🔍 Some signs your fl**ge is the wrong size:
•Areola being pulled into the tunnel
•Rubbing, pinching, or blanching of the ni**le
•Pain or swelling after pumping
•Low output despite consistent sessions or feeling like there’s still milk in there after you pump

💡 The “just right” fit means your ni**le moves freely in the tunnel with no ar**la pull, no pain, and better milk flow. It should feel like nothing or a gentle pull/tug

👉 Rarely do we stick with the default size. Almost always it’s smaller, sometimes inserts or custom fl**ges are the answer.

Mama, you deserve to pump comfortably AND effectively. Don’t settle for “what came in the box.”

**gefit

08/20/2025

The food you eat and the water you drink do not magically go directly to your breast milk. What you eat and drink goes first to your stomach to be broken down and then into your intestines to be absorbed and processed. Your digestive system breaks nutrients into parts small enough for your body to absorb and use for energy, growth, and cell repair. The muscles of the small intestine mix food with digestive juices from the pancreas, liver, and intestine. Special cells in the walls of the small intestine absorb water and the digested nutrients into your bloodstream. Your blood carries molecule-sized components such as simple sugars (carbohydrates), amino acids, white blood cells, enzymes, water, fat, and proteins throughout your body. As blood passes by the breasts, milk glands pull out these nutrients for milk production and pass some of them to your baby. Not all molecules are small enough to pass through into milk. (That’s why some medications are safe to take while breastfeeding and some are not. Molecules that are too big can’t get into the milk while really small molecules can.)

Nuts, seeds, beans, and grains all have plant based proteins. Meat and dairy are animal based proteins. Both plant and animal proteins carried in your blood can make it into your milk. Sometimes these proteins can affect baby’s digestive system, causing symptoms like reflux, gas, colic, and blood or mucus in the poops from iritations to baby’s intestinal lining. Diary proteins are the most common cause of upset in the stomach, however research suggests that the proportion of exclusively breastfed infants who are actually allergic to something in their mother’s milk is very small. (https://bit.ly/3rFHotE). Fussiness and gas alone are not enough to diagnose a cow milk protein allergy.

In general, there are NO foods that need to be avoided because you’re breastfeeding. Every baby is different in the foods they are sensitive to. IF your baby always seems to have a reaction when you eat a certain food or a large amount of a certain type of food, cutting back on it or cutting it out temporarily may be helpful.

08/19/2025

08/18/2025

03/25/2025

Making healthy food choices while you’re breastfeeding will help you recover from your pregnancy and get the nutrients you need to keep up with that busy mom life! Contact your WIC local agency to find out how they can help you get more healthy foods into your diet. WIC.Mo.Gov

03/21/2025

Our Breastfeeding Peer Counselors Savannah and Melody have been busy Bees and Toad-ally getting our bulletin boards ready for spring!

If you're in the office, stop by and check them out!