By
L’Oreal Adams
Bengal
News West Reporter
Pampers, pacifiers and playpens are
some of the many items that a new mom will need while caring for her bundle of
joy. Eating a variety of fruits, vegetables, oats, lean meats, and vitamins
will increase her chances of delivering a healthy baby.
Having a baby requires more than
choosing a name and planning a baby shower.
Resources on the West Side recognize the special needs that a new mother
may have. These services make prenatal and postpartum care easier for mothers-to-be
from our backyard and from all over the globe. It could be particularly
challenging for a mother who speaks very little English and doesn’t know the
health care system.
The Priscilla Project of Buffalo is
a program with Jericho Road Community Health Center on 184 Barton St. The
project caters to low-income, pregnant refugee clients. Volunteers work
one-on-one with expecting mothers and visit them weekly until the birth of the
baby.
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| Expectant mom Mugiraneza Gakumi |
Sandra Doss, senior case manager at the
Priscilla Project, believes that the bond formed between moms and volunteers is
more than just community work.
“They act as a support, a resource, and
a friend for them,” Doss said.
There are programs that address healthy
lifestyles during pregnancy. One is Project Choices, a program of the Erie
County Council for the Prevention of Alcohol and Substance Abuse, which works
with women of childbearing age in part to help reduce or stop the consumption
of alcohol during pregnancy.
Tammy M. McGovern, a West Side resident
and interventionist prevention educator with Project Choices, believes that
it’s important for a woman to be aware
of what she is putting into her body if she is at childbearing age and isn’t
using birth control. Often women will become pregnant and will be unaware for
as long as three months. Smoking and binge drinking during the first trimester
can also result in a complicated birth.
“It is not okay to consume any amount
of alcohol during a pregnancy and it is very important that the mother eats the
proper foods that will be beneficial for her and the baby,” McGovern said.
Project
Choices promotes proper nutrition to reduce the risk of disease and foster
longevity, which is the mission of Nourish Nova, a new business literally catering
to expectant mothers.
This May, Nourish Nova will prepare
and deliver meals designed to help nurture fertility, promote a healthy pregnancy,
and to provide supportive nutrients for mama and baby after birth.
West Side residents James and Sarah Ernest are the creators
and chefs running Nourish Nova. They were inspired to create this when Sarah
had an emergency cesarean and newborn baby Stella
had to go under special care for a week.
“Stella's birth and our early journey together
has inspired our family to start this business so families can have delicious
and revitalizing foods to eat after birth to help rebuild nutrients,” Sarah
said. “My daughter and I are coming up to our one-year breastfeeding journey, and
I feel that my diet and positive mindset is what has continued us through,
regardless of the difficulties we faced after birth.”
Since recovery, the new parents have been able
to focus on business. With just a click of a button, delicious dishes such as Blueberry
Baked Oatmeal, and Pumpkin Lentil Chili could be delivered right to your door.
The company will also offer Dancing Mama Snack
Boxes that can be bought, gifted and shipped nationally. It will contain
samples of treats such as Mama’s Magical Macaroons and Booby Bites. It will
also sell kid-friendly foods like Veggie Nuggets and Butternut Squash Mac n
Cheese with carrot dogs.
Sarah and her husband chose the name Nourish
Nova because nova mans new or young and, Sarah said, they “hope to nourish both
mama and baby in their new lives together.”