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Australian Breastfeeding Association

Established in 1964 as the Nursing Mothers' Association of Australia, this self-help group was founded by Melbourne woman Mary Paton and five friends, Jan Barry, Glenise Francis, Susan Woods, Pat Paterson and Pauline Pick. Discouraged by the feeding regimes promoted in maternity hospitals and infant welfare centres, they drew on material produced by the American La Leche League (1956) to develop a support service for nursing mothers. Funded by member subscriptions and a diverse range of retail products, the renamed Australian Breastfeeding Association operates through local branches, members of which provide support and counselling to nursing mothers and lobby to remove barriers in the way of breastfeeding. Its research arm, the Lactation Resource Centre, provides information to health professionals and offers consultancy services to companies wanting to improve productivity by workplace breastfeeding support.

Shurlee Swain

References
Reiger, Kerreen M., Our bodies, our babies: The forgotten women's movement, Melbourne University Press, Melbourne, 2001. Details