The Rivers State government has joined the rest of the world in recognizing the first week of August as breastfeeding week worldwide, an initiative to raise awareness on the benefits of breastfeeding and its importance as a long term effect on the growth and development of infants as declared by the state ministry of health.
According to the release signed by the press officer of the ministry and sent to our news desk Wupele Benebo, the theme this year is “breastfeeding support, close to mothers began from 1st of August to 8th August this year.
Highlighting the benefit to be derived from long term breastfeeding, the release has it that finding has revealed that the best feeding option globally is the initiation of breastfeeding within the first half hours of life with exclusive breastfeeding for a full six months and continued breastfeeding through the second year or beyond.
Pointing out that for mothers and infants, exclusive breastfeeding brings several health benefits, such as reduced risk of acquiring breast and ovarian cancer, faster restoration of pre-pregnancy height, strong immune systems with results in less diahorrhea.
Others are related childhood illness and reduction of “Sudden infant death syndrome which is associated to babies fed with artificial milk as against the thoughts of young mothers that breastfeeding is often thought to be unnecessary.
Young mothers are mistakenly led to believe that infant formular does very well as a replacement for breast milk but this is not really the case.
Saying that nothing can duplicate the properties of human breast milk. It remains the one and only nature’s food for the human infants that ensures infants good health and quality of life through childhood to adult life.
The release has it that, the attention of the theme this year is focused on the benefits of peer counseling and support for breastfeeding mothers.
Pointing out that when mothers do not visit health facilities, there is often a decline in breastfeeding rates, particularly exclusive breastfeeding, stressing that this period is the time that breastfeeding peer counseling becomes essential to providing the families, health workers, community counselors, breastfeeding support groups, community leaders or friends who are also mothers or fathers.
The state commissioner of Health, Dr. Sampson Parker, there fore appealed that, it is very important that everybody including government at all levels, employers and community members to give support to breastfeeding mothers to enable them achieve maximum health benefits for babies. ###
