A NEW breastfeeding app for smart phones has been launched by Dorset HealthCare to offer local mothers and pregnant women a 24-hour private resource.

Breast Start gives information on the benefits of breastfeeding, how to breastfeed and express milk, safe sleeping and details of local breastfeeding support groups at the touch of a button.

The app will also help those who may not have regular internet access and will become a means of sharing information with young mums who may feel isolated after having a baby.

The Breastfeeding Support Team is also celebrating its second wave of volunteers who have qualified as Breastfeeding Peer Supporters following a seven-week Open College Network training course.

Caroline Baddiley, Dorset HealthCare’s breastfeeding educator, said: “We have 17 volunteers who have successfully completed their training, bringing the total number of volunteer peer supporters at the trust to 25. They are now ready to attend their local breastfeeding support groups to provide mother-to-mother support.

“We offer at least four places per training intake specifically to teenage mothers, as this age group is known to have lower breastfeeding uptake and poorer health outcomes for both mother and child. Our aim is to recruit teenage ‘champions’ alongside our older peer supporters, who can then support and encourage other young mothers who may be ambivalent about their choice of feeding method.”

Dorset HealthCare’s breastfeeding training courses run twice a year with the next course set to start in September at Southbourne Children’s Centre. For more, email claire.wakefield@dhuft.nhs.uk or visit dorsethealthcare.nhs.uk/breastfeeding.