When breastfeeding doesn’t go as planned

Breastfeeding is not always easy, and for some women it can be downright difficult. Even with excellent support and specialized assistance, your breastfeeding experience might not live up to your expectations. Some women cope well with these difficulties, while others feel sad and frustrated or even guilty because they cannot achieve the goals they set for themselves. Successful breastfeeding depends on a number of factors that you can’t always control.

Breastfeeding accessories

There is an ever-expanding array of breastfeeding accessories on the market—from breast pumps, nursing bras, and pillows to nursing pads and more. None of them are essential, and some can even interfere with breastfeeding.

However, reusable or disposable nursing pads may be useful if your breast milk leaks. A nursing bra isn’t necessary either, but can be very practical. If you’re thinking about getting a breast pump, community breastfeeding support organizations are an excellent source of information when the time comes to choose one.

False Allegations of Child Sexual Abuse

Highlights

  • The number of children who make false allegations of sexual abuse is lower than the number of children who do not disclose or deny having been sexually abused.
  • Several factors related to a child’s personal characteristics and environment, as well as to the interviews conducted to investigate sexual abuse allegations, may lead children to make false allegations.
  • The way in which a child is interviewed by a parent, an adult in their social network (e.g., teacher, neighbour), or a socio-legal professional about a case of alle

Sexual Assault: What is It?

Highlights

  • There is no universal definition of sexual assault, and it can be defined according to different perspectives (e.g., political, legal, clinical or scientific).
  • One element that is common to all forms of sexual assault is the absence of consent, meaning that the victim did not consent to the sexual activity or to its continuation, was unable to consent or refuse, or was below the age of consent.
  • The Quebec government defines sexual assault as an act of a sexual natu

Disclosure of sexual assault

Highlights

  • Disclosing sexual assault is a complex and gradual process. It can occur in a variety of contexts and can be deliberate, spontaneous or accidental, especially in the case of children.
  • People who disclose sexual assault usually do so to someone close to them (e.g., family member, friend, intimate partner).
  • Few people report the event to the police or professional help services.

Receiving a disclosure of sexual assault

This text is intended to support people who receive - or who want to know what to do if they receive - a disclosure of sexual assault, whether made by a child or an adult. It provides information on how to receive a disclosure of sexual assault, and in no way replaces the expertise of counsellors and professionals working with victims of sexual assault.

If you are or have been a victim of sexual assault, we invite you to consult our Resources page.

Identifying food deserts

Being able to acquire nutritious food close to where one lives is considered a key factor in healthy eating. Identifying areas where geographical access to nutritious food is poor enables us to act in these areas.

Definitions

Area with low access to nutritious foods: an area where the average distance between home and the nearest store offering nutritious foods is one kilometre or more in urban areas or sixteen kilometres or more in rural areas.1

About the toolbox

This toolbox provides public health professionals and other interested parties with the tools used in the EffICAS study. These can help draw up a diagnostic portrait of food access and evaluate the process of establishing food co-ops, as well as their effects, in order to facilitate evaluation in this field.

The toolbox was funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada, as part of the Promoting Health Equity: Intersectoral Action on the Social Determinants of Health program.

Learn more about the EffICAS study

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