Group of Manitoba mothers take on breastfeeding challenge

Dozens of Manitoba mothers joined thousands of women across the country in a breastfeeding challenge at the legislature Saturday morning.

Babies latched on at the same time to see how many women could breastfeed at once nation-wide.

The Breastfeeding Challange event was held to raise awareness about the benefits of feeding babies this way.

"What we would like to see is, is that people feed exclusively breastfeed or only use breast milk for the first six months of that baby's life, that's all the baby needs," said Carolyn Perchuk, a public health nurse in Winnipeg.

She said about about 88 per cent of new moms are choosing to breast feed their newborns.

"Breastfeeding has great benefits to both mom and baby," said Marusia Kachkowski, the chair of the Winnipeg Breastfeeding Support Network in a press release.

"It promotes infant health and strengthens the bond between mom and baby. The Challenge is a fun event that not only raises awareness of the importance of breastfeeding, but also helps build a strong community among new mothers," she continued.

More than 100 breastfeeding sites were set up across Canada for the event.