The barriers identified are community and
cultural pressures; shortage of health workers; lack of maternity protection;
and the ‘Big Business Barrier’, the impact the actions of the breastmilk
substitutes (BMS) manufacturers have on breastfeeding rates.
The first hour after birth is very important for babies. If exclusive breastfeeding were initiated in the first hour after birth, Save the Children tells us that ‘we could save 95 tiny lives every hour.’
The launch of this report is combined with
a campaign to call the manufacturers of BMS to account.
Save the Children was one of the supporters
the World Breastfeeding Conference 2012 which I wrote about in a previous
blog. One of the statements to come
out of the Conference is ‘Breastfeeding is a public health imperative’. We welcome the Save the Children report and the campaign to call 'Big Business' to account and protect the health and well-being of their customers. Babies who
are not breastfed are at risk of infection, malnutrition and even death. The Save the Children report and
campaign focuses on the effects in poorer countries where the risk of death is
high.
The anti-breastfeeding lobby is working
hard. There is already an article
in the Daily Mail saying that the report is ‘guilt tripping’ mothers in the UK
who use formula. No report can
make a mother feel guilty. She may
already be having a hard time because her baby is more likely to be ill and
hospitalised with all the unhappiness that brings because she is giving
formula. This may be an attempt by
the companies to distract us from the campaign to call them to account. Don’t let them do it. Breastfeeding must be protected and
defended whenever the suggestion that it is not important appears in public.
To access the petition: http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/danone-nestle-petition
For more information about the campaign and
the report: http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/95-babies
Jill
P.S. There is an argument against calling breastmilk a ‘superfood’, with all the suggestion that it is an ‘added extra’ rather than the normal food for babies (but, that's another blog).
P.S. There is an argument against calling breastmilk a ‘superfood’, with all the suggestion that it is an ‘added extra’ rather than the normal food for babies (but, that's another blog).
