World Breastfeeding Awareness Week: ‘Only breast feed for first 6 mths ideal for newborn’
: As World Breastfeeding Awareness Week is underway, the Lucknow chapter of the Indian Pediatrics Association is conducting citywide awareness camps and seminars to inspire discussions about breastfeeding of newborn babies, so that young mothers are aware of the healthiest practices.
According to the National Family Health Survey 2021 (NFHS 5), Uttar Pradesh is one of the leading states neglecting to breastfeed newborn babies within the first hour of birth, second only to Jharkhand.
The rate of newborn babies breastfed within the first hour of their birth is 23.8%, with Jharkhand
having the lowest percentage of 21.5%. Doctors also agree that UP is among the least aware states on breastfeeding making way for health issues in babies getting aggravated due to this negligence.
“The risks of not breastfeeding newborn babies exclusively are much higher than the convenience of feeding formula,” said Dr Mir Waqar Beg, a practising paediatrician with his own clinic and a member of the Lucknow Pediatrics Association. He further said that in his observation, the practice of formula-feeding is trickling down from the urban to rural populace.
Noting that 40% of newborn babies in UP are not exclusively breastfed between the ages of 0 6 months (NFHS 5), he explained, “A baby needs around 100-150 ml of milk per kg of their weight for about 6 months, and that is sufficient for them. We always urge working parents to pump breast milk and refrigerate it so that they do not resort to formula.” Breastmilk can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours, and can be stored at room temperature for eight hours, said Dr. Beg. He said that parents in rural areas often resort to formula because the new mothers also need a minimum of 3 litres of liquid intake to be able to properly produce breast milk. “Oxytocins are released in the body the moment a baby latches on, and on average mothers’ bodies are able to produce milk for at least two years after birth.
He enumerated that children can suffer from anaemia, diarrhoea, viral fever, infections and other immunity issues if they do not get the correct amount of breastmilk. “Across hospitals and clinics in state, children who have been exclusively breastfed grow up exponentially healthier than babies who have not,” he said. For this entire week, hospitals across the state along with the UP branches of the Indian Pediatrics Association, are conducting awareness programmes for medical students and new mothers. In Lucknow, King George’s Medical College, Integral Medical College, Era’s Lucknow Medical College and Hospital, Dufferin Hospital have all conducted similar awareness programmes, and more are to come up till August 7.