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LA Best Babies Network

Videos: Second-Time Mom Talks About Benefits of ‘Welcome Baby’

Ashley, a second-time mom in Lancaster, California, never breastfed her first daughter. But that was six years ago and she was determined to breastfeed her new baby girl. Initially, it wasn’t easy — it was downright painful — but she credits her Welcome Baby parent coach for talking her through the challenges and helping her succeed.

“If we didn’t talk about that, I probably would not have breastfed — not at all,” she tells parent coach Maureen Farrell

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Video: Dr. Sean Kossari Highlights the Benefits of ‘Welcome Baby’

San Fernando Valley OB/GYN Dr. Sean Kossari tells Welcome Baby outreach specialist Mardee Jessop why he encourages all his patients to enroll in the Welcome Baby program. Specific topics include: parent education, breastfeeding, parent-child bonding, maternal depression, and helping parents understand healthy infant development.

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‘Talk Read Sing’ Activities and Resources

In The Gift of Play: Brain Building and Bonding With Your Baby, we posted information, videos, and resources to help and encourage parents to play with their babies. But we couldn’t stop ourselves — there’s just so much more to share. Here’s another round of resources related to the talking-reading-singing movement.

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Resources: Diabetes and Pregnancy (Gestational Diabetes)

Each November, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) leads a campaign to focus the nation’s attention on issues surrounding diabetes. This week marked the end of American Diabetes Month, but we wanted to post some related resources and information that you can use throughout the year, especially those that focus on diabetes and pregnancy.

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ChooseHealthLAMoms.com Helps New Moms Achieve Healthy Weight

This week the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health launched ChooseHealthLAMoms.com, a free online resource to help new mothers in L.A. County get healthy after having a baby. By encouraging three simple activities — exclusive breastfeeding, drinking water, and walking — the website aims to help new moms return to a healthy weight. Moms can create an account on the website to get free lessons, text reminders, and a weekly tracker that …

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Look Before You Lock: Prevent Child Heatstroke in Cars. #CheckForBaby

Labor Day may mark the ceremonial end of summer, but here in southern California it’s still all scorch and sizzle. And inside a parked car, the heat can be deadly. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 636 children died in hot cars between 1998 and 2014.

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Poverty and Its Effects on Infant and Maternal Health

It’s not news that poorer families often have poorer health and educational outcomes. But current research is casting new light on this relationship. For instance, the conditions that attend poverty can be toxic to the developing brain, leading to long-term behavioral and cognitive difficulties. The lack of access to affordable, nutritious food in low-income neighborhoods is another public health issue that is getting increased attention. Here’s a roundup of recent research.

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