Last week, Mayor Lester Miller presented a proclamation to Atrium Health Navicent staff declaring January as Birth Defects Awareness Month in Macon-Bibb County. 

Birth defects strike an estimated 1 in 33 babies born in the United States each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Birth defects are a leading cause of death in the first year of life, associated with 20 percent of infant deaths nationwide. 

The aim of Birth Defects Awareness Month is to inform Americans that awareness of birth defects helps families get the information they need to seek proper care before, during and after pregnancy. Read more about it here.