The number of U.S. babies who start out breastfeeding is rising, and the City of Knoxville and Knox County are responding to that trend by offering nursing rooms in public spaces.

The number of breastfed U.S. babies increased from 73 percent of babies born in 2004 to 83 percent of babies born in 2014, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last year. 

Moreover, 55 percent of U.S. babies were breastfeeding for at least six months in 2014, up from 42 percent in 2004.

Later this week, the City will be issuing a proclamation in support of World Breastfeeding Week, held August 1-7, 2018. The proclamation will be presented at the kick-off event on Friday, Aug. 3 at 10 a.m. at Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Ave.

Three of the City’s public facilities –the Civic Coliseum, the Knoxville Convention Center, and the Public Works Service Center – now offer breastfeeding rooms. In addition, the City County Building and the Knox County Health Department also have rooms for breastfeeding mothers. 

In 2016, the Knox County Health Department obtained a highly-competitive Project Diabetes grant from the Tennessee Department of Health. One component of the grant was to create supportive environments for breastfeeding mothers in public and private worksites. Some of the grant funds were used to make improvements to an existing breastfeeding room in the City County Building, located in room 313A. These improvements were facilitated and supported by PBA and the Knox County Employee Benefits Department.  

“Breastfeeding is a public health priority, laying the foundation for a healthy life for our children, even reducing a child’s risk for obesity later in life,” said Dr. Martha Buchanan. “While rates are increasing, Tennessee is still not close to the national average. Providing more supportive environments for mothers to breastfeed is an excellent way to support women in making this healthy choice.”

This past year, the City of Knoxville and its partners opened two new breastfeeding rooms at the Coliseum and the Public Works Service Center, 3131 Morris Ave. Both were funded through KCHD’s Project Diabetes grant, totaling about $2,000. Each project includes a six-tier single unit box locker, arm chair, table, lamp, refrigerator, coolers packs, microwave and other miscellaneous breastfeeding supplies.

SMG, which manages the City’s major public event spaces, built the nursing rooms in the Civic Coliseum and the Convention Center.

“Attendees have been pleasantly surprised to find out how accommodating our facilities are” says SMG General Manager Mary Bogert.  “We also have had a few conferences where we have had a line to use these areas.”  

PBA incorporated a nursing room in The Center, the City’s health and wellness center located in the City’s new Public Works Service Center.

“We’ve received many notes of thanks for having a breastfeeding room in the City County Building,” said Jayne Burritt, Administrator and CEO for the Public Building Authority. “Even jurors and individuals attending court hearings have frequently used it.” 

The five buildings with nursing rooms house about 1,300 government and SMG employees.

“As employers who also manage facilities open to the public, the partners involved in this process are mindful of how these nursing rooms will serve both employees and citizens,” said Christine Fitzgerald, Employee Benefits and Risk Management Director for the City of Knoxville. “From an employee benefits perspective, we pursued the addition of nursing rooms to hopefully ease the challenge of returning to work while breastfeeding, as it is beneficial to both mother and child.”

As budgets and grant funds permit, the City and County plan to add to more breastfeeding rooms to government buildings. For example, a breastfeeding room will be a consideration when the new Knoxville Police and Fire Headquarters is built.

Khrysta Baig, a registered dietitian and the Benefits Director for Knox County Government said, “The many health benefits of breastfeeding for both moms and babies result in lower health insurance costs and reduced absences when a mother returns to work. Breastfeeding doesn’t just make good health sense – it makes good dollars and cents.”