SHE’S ONE SMART MOM, SHE’S GOT
Text4baby
Technology has come a long way in our society
today.
As I became aware of the following program
that supports moms by providing accurate, text-length health information
and resources in a format that is personal and timely, I thought it
would be beneficial to share this information with our Moms and
Moms-to-be.
Despite decades of public health outreach
and education, more than 500,000 babies are born prematurely and an
estimated 28,000 children die before their first birthday each year in
the United States.
To help more pregnant women and new moms
get information about caring for their health and giving their babies
the best possible start in life, the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy
Babies Coalition launched text4baby, the first free health text
messaging service in the U.S.
Over 85% of Americans own a cell phone and
72% of cell users send or receive text messages.
Text4baby was launched nationally on
February 4, 2010.
Thanks to the support of CTIA – the Wireless
Foundation and participating mobile operators, all messages you receive
from text4baby are free!
Even individuals without a text messaging
plan can get these messages for free.
If someone has limited texts per month,
text4baby won’t take away from that limit.
As long as you have service with one of
these carriers – such as AT & T, Assurance Wireless, Bluegrass Cellular,
Boost Mobile, Cellular South, Cellcom, Centennial Cellular, Cincinnati
Bell, Cricket, Metro PCS, N-Telos, Nex-Tech Wireless, Sprint Nextel,
T-Mobile, U. S. Cellular, Verizon Wireless and Virgin Mobile USA –
text4baby is free for you.
Registration is easy and can be done online or
from your cell phone.
Use your cell phone to text the word BABY
or BEBE for Spanish t the number 511411.
You’ll be asked to enter your baby’s due
date or your baby’s birthday and your zip code.
Once registered, you will start receiving
free messages with tips for your pregnancy or caring for your baby.
These messages are timed to your due date
or your baby’s birth date.
If you are pregnant and your due date
changes, text UPDATE to 511411 to enter your new due date.
Once you have your baby, be sure to text in
UPDATE with your baby’s birthday so you keep getting messages through
baby’s first year.
You will receive approximately three
messages per week.
Urgent alerts or breaking news might mean
you see a few additional messages once in a while.
The text4baby messages are not
personalized, but the information is relevant to where you are in your
pregnancy or what your baby is going through at particular states of
development.
Text4baby is a one-way educational program,
so you can’t text questions or communicate back with the program.
However, if you have specific questions,
you can call the phone numbers you find in the messages.
The messages will continue throughout your
pregnancy and your baby’s first year. If you want to stop receiving
messages from text4baby, text STOP to 511411.
The text4baby service includes over 250 messages
addressing topics such as:
Prenatal Care, Safe Sleep, Immunization,
Breastfeeding, Diabetes, Nutrition, Oral health, Family Violence,
Physical Activity, Safety, Injury Prevention, Mental Health, Substance
Abuse, Developmental Milestones, Labor & Delivery, Care Seat Safety and
Exercise.
If you would like to register online or receive more information about
this program, please go to www.text4baby.org
In accordance with federal law and U. S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. to file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Ave., S. W., Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal-opportunity provider and employer. You may also call our toll-free number for assistance: 1-800-942-3678.
Milam
County Health Department