Around the globe, parents’ options and choices about feeding their infants and young children are influenced by an ever-changing patchwork of laws and policies. 

Has your work as a lactation professional brought you up close and personal with such a law or policy? And would you like to share what you’ve learned? 

If so, you may want to consider a submission to the Journal of Human Lactation’s (JHL) upcoming special issue covering this topic.

The February 2022 issue of the JHL will be dedicated to the latest information and analysis on laws and policies affecting breastfeeding and infant/young child feeding around the world.

Submissions are due 1 October 2021.

A variety of types of submissions are sought, including:

  • original research
  • literature reviews
  • case studies
  • insights into practice and policy.

The JHL has suggested a wide range of potential topics, including:

  • The WHO Code. How is it applied in 2021? Which countries follow it, and which have enforceable laws? What are the outcomes of these laws? Which companies and organizations operate on the edges of the Code?
  • Paid parental leave. What are the laws in your country? How have laws and policies influenced feeding standards over time, as well as affected initiation and exclusivity rates?
  • Workplace lactation support. How are work environment policies for lactation implemented? What is the employer’s responsibility for making lactation rooms available for employees? How have these and similar policies affected feeding? What are state, provincial, and/or federal laws which do not include provisions for enforcement? Where do laws not even exist? What are the ramifications of each?
  • Government regulations. What are the effects in your setting of the presence or absence of policies intended to increase access to IBCLC care? How can policies enacted for one region actually cause harm if implemented in other areas of the world?
  • Breastfeeding in public. Are new laws needed in your setting? What are the existing laws? What are ongoing issues with complaints about public indecency?
  • Education policy. Is there a need for funding to train new IBCLCs in areas with low rates of breastfeeding? Where might such funding come from?
  • Funding regulations or policies for health care practices. What influence do insurance regulations and policies, as well as national healthcare practices,  in your area have on infant and young child feeding?
  • Licensure of IBCLCs. What obstacles have arisen in places where human milk feeding advocates have introduced legislation to license IBCLCs? Where (and how) have these obstacles been overcome?
  • Drug regulations. How do the United State’s regulations concerning Domperidone affect practice? What other global issues are there regarding drug regulation and lactation?

The JHL emphasizes that this is not an exhaustive list; other topics may also be suitable.

Wondering whether your idea is a good fit? Contact JHL Editor-in-Chief Joan E. Dodgson, Ph.D., MPH, RN, FAAN, at jlheditorinchief@gmail.com, or visit https://journals.sagepub.com/home/jhl.



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