Breastfeeding Support Groups as Participation and Health Promotion Praxis within Communities Autora

Abstract

Breastfeeding support groups, such as mutual help health groups, which arise spontaneously through mothers helping each other, are considered community participation health initiatives of special relevance. Their prominence and social presence has grown exponentially in the last decade becoming an educational and emotional support for the nursing mother. This article will delve into the reality of breastfeeding support groups, understood as initiatives for participation and training on community based health, analyzing to what extent these initiatives improve the well-being and quality of life of mothers and children, and, thus that of the community where they live. To do this, first we need to address the issues of participation and community capacity in the area of promotion and health education, and secondly we need to encompass, the contribution of the breastfeeding support groups in improving both health individually and collectively, as well as their capacity for social action in the health sector.