WHO Tweeted That Breastfeeding Is Much Easier When Everyone Steps Up To Support Mothers

Breastfeeding gives power to both mother and the child. For the mother, it can help them lose the pregnancy weight faster and even prevent many diseases like cancer and type-2 diabetes. Breastmilk is the ideal food for infants. It is safe, clean, and contains antibodies that help protect against many common childhood illnesses. Breastmilk provides all the energy and nutrients that the infant needs for the first months of life, and it continues to provide up to half or more of a child’s nutritional needs during the second half of the first year, and up to one-third during the second year of life. Breastfed children perform better on intelligence tests, are less likely to be overweight or obese, and are less prone to diabetes later in life.

Breastfeeding Is Easier When:

• Everyone steps up to support mothers.
• You start learning about it before your baby is born.
• Your baby stays with you constantly in the days after birth.
• Your family and friends listen and provide emotional and practical help.
• There is a trusted breastfeeding counsellor you can call.
• Your workplace provides support and dedicated time and space to breastfeed or express your milk.

Inappropriate marketing of breast-milk substitutes continues to undermine efforts to improve breastfeeding rates and duration worldwide. WHO and UNICEF recommend that children initiate breastfeeding within the first hour of birth and be exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of life – meaning no other foods or liquids are provided, including water. Infants should be breastfed on demand, as often as the child wants, day and night. No bottles, teats, or pacifiers should be used.

From the age of 6 months, children should begin eating safe and adequate complementary foods while continuing to breastfeed for up to 2 years and beyond. WHO actively promotes breastfeeding as the best source of nourishment for infants and young children, and is working to increase the rate of exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months up to at least 50% by 2025.

WHO and UNICEF created the Global Breastfeeding Collective to rally political, legal, financial, and public support for breastfeeding. The Collective brings together implementers and donors from governments, philanthropies, international organizations, and civil society. Additionally, WHO provides training courses for health workers to provide skilled support to breastfeeding mothers, help them overcome problems, and monitor children’s growth.

Over To You:
As we read, #Breastfeeding is definitely powerful! If everyone strives to step up for breastfeeding, it will become much easier.