Colorado Joins the Baby Box Movement: Providing Free Parenting Education and Resources to All Expecting Parents Statewide

DENVER, July 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Baby Box Co., the company behind the global initiative to equip expecting families with vital parenting education and resources, today announced that Rocky Mountain Children's Health Foundation (RMCHF) and Denver Health Foundation (DHF) will bring the initiative to Colorado, making it the fifth U.S. state to offer families a universal free Baby Box program. By completing an online syllabus, developed specifically for Colorado by RMCHF in partnership with Denver's Department of Public Health, through the educational platform, Baby Box University, all new and expecting parents in Colorado will also receive a Baby Box to ensure their infants have a safe, equitable start in life.

The statewide program will provide access to online education through Baby Box University earmarking approximately 66,500 free Baby Boxes for distribution, the estimated number of Colorado babies expected to be delivered within one year, according to the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Partners for the Colorado program include Rocky Mountain Children's Health Foundation, Denver Health Foundation, Denver Department of Public Health, Lansinoh, and multiple other health care organizations throughout the state.

One way Baby Boxes are utilized is to promote safe sleep habits which can be challenging for sleep deprived parents and particularly for breastfeeding mothers. According to a recent study released by Temple University Hospital, 59 percent of mothers who exclusively breastfed their babies and used a Baby Box said it made breastfeeding easier, due to the proximity of the Baby Boxes at night. This study also found that Baby Boxes cut co-sleeping rates in breastfeeding mothers by half since mothers can keep the Baby Box close by without having to co-sleep out of convenience.

Rocky Mountain Children's Health Foundation is working with The Baby Box Co. as part of the Foundation's Best Start Program which aims to provide evidence-based resources and education to ensure that every newborn in Colorado has a safe place to sleep, can reap the benefits of human milk and will thrive by building a strong and healthy brain. RMCHF is passionate about this program and committed to leveraging additional resources through its statewide network of hospitals, clinics and public health and government agencies to ensure accessibility for all expecting and new parents in Colorado.

"At Rocky Mountain Children's Health Foundation, we are committed to giving every baby born in Colorado the best start in life. One way we are doing this is by working to improve breastfeeding rates," said neonatologist Jan Kennaugh, MD. "It is our hope that the educational resources contained in Baby Box University and through Mothers' Milk Bank and the convenience of the Baby Boxes will aid in this effort. As baby's best first food, the benefits of human milk last a lifetime, helping to prevent illness, infections and chronic diseases later in life."

"Unfortunately babies don't come with a manual but our hope is that Baby Box University can serve as a helpful starting place to glean expert information and coaching on how to support your child in infancy and beyond," said Jennifer Clary, co-founder & CEO of The Baby Box Co. "There is an expansive wealth of information available for free ranging from father involvement, to birth preparation to infant safety."

"Each year approximately 3,500 babies are born at Denver Health so above all else we are committed to the safety and health of those precious newborns.  We believe that the Baby Box is a wonderful tool for teaching safe sleep practices to our Denver Health families and we're excited to provide this resource for them," said Robin Engleberg, Program Manager at the Denver Health Foundation. "We plan to distribute the Baby Boxes at prenatal visits in each of our nine community health clinics located in the most vulnerable areas across the city."

Launch Event to Give Away First Baby Boxes

Rocky Mountain Children's Health Foundation is hosting a special launch event aimed at educating new moms on the important fundamentals of breastfeeding with educational seminars and one-on-one consultations with Lansinoh plus a tour of its Mothers' Milk Bank, the largest nonprofit milk bank in North America.

The event will take place at:
Rocky Mountain Children's Health Foundation
Thursday, July 13 at 10:00 a.m.
Address: 5394 Marshall St. Arvada, CO 80002.
Please note that limited on site and street parking is available. Additional parking is available at VFW Hall (5340 Marshall St. Arvada, CO 80002)

How Colorado New Parents Can Get Their Free Baby Box

It takes only three simple steps for expecting and new parents in Colorado to get their free Baby Box:

1. Register for free online at BabyBoxUniversity.com as a Colorado resident. Be sure to include your correct contact information, including mailing address.
2. Watch the 10-15 minute Colorado syllabus at BabyBoxUniversity.com. After taking a short quiz, you will receive a certificate of completion and then select local pick-up or direct delivery of your Baby Box.
3. If you select direct delivery, your Baby Box will ship to the address you provided when you registered on Baby Box University. If you select local pick up for more immediate receipt, bring your Baby Box University certificate to the closest participating distribution site to collect your Baby Box.

The brands included in the Baby Boxes are also committed to the program's education mission, with every product featuring a scientifically proven baby brain-boosting activity parents can do while using the item. All expecting parents living in Colorado are eligible to receive a Baby Box which includes newborn essentials such as Pampers Swaddlers diapers, Pampers baby wipes, Vroom activity cards from the Bezos Family Foundation, Lansinoh nursing pads and nipple cream for breastfeeding mothers, onesie, waterproof tote bag and more.

The Baby Box Movement

The Baby Box University program is already available universally, at no cost to parents, in the states of Alabama, Ohio, Texas and New Jersey. The Baby Box University program pays homage to the Finnish tradition, which is committed not just to universal product distribution, but to supporting families with access to healthcare and education. The Finnish initiative, which enables every expecting woman in the country to claim a free Baby Box once she receives prenatal care and parenting information from a healthcare professional, is credited with helping to decrease Finland's infant mortality rate from 65 deaths for each 1,000 children born in 1938 to 1.3 deaths per 1,000 births in 2013, according to the World Health Organization.

The success and model of the Finnish Baby Box intervention inspired the founders of The Baby Box Co. to adapt this tradition with enhanced online multimedia parenting curricula through Baby Box University that addresses infant mortality issues and childcare education specific to the United States.

About The Baby Box Co.

The Baby Box Co. is an innovative, integrated program supporting parents and improving maternal and infant healthcare outcomes globally. The Baby Box Co. partners with hospitals, government agencies and nonprofit organizations to provide Baby Boxes, quality products, resources and ongoing education to families on a large scale. The Baby Boxes, which are made from a durable cardboard and are proactively certified to meet the highest level of available safety standards by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), as well as Health Canada and EN Standard regulations for bassinets, can be used as a baby's bed for the first months of life. While parents appreciate the Baby Boxes and quality care products included, it is the educational component and closer communication with local healthcare providers that is at the center of the Baby Box University distribution model. Families are required to view their community's online curriculum before receiving a free Baby Box. Serving families in 52 countries, The Baby Box Co. has offices in the USA, UK, Canada, and Singapore. For more information, please visit www.babyboxco.com and www.babyboxuniversity.com.

SOURCE The Baby Box Co.

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