Husbands and family members have been urged to promote exclusive breastfeeding amongst nursing mothers to help Ghana reach the ultimate goal of 100 per cent breastfeeding.
This is because husbands are much closer to their wives and play a major role in the wellbeing of their children.
The call was made by Programme Manager of Breastfeeding, Mrs Eunice Sackey at the Monthly Health Promotion theme briefing to precede the 2017 World Breastfeeding Week under the theme ‘Sustaining Breastfeeding Together.’
She advised mothers to start breastfeeding within 30minutes after birth since early breastfeeding helps the baby learn to breast feed while the breast is still soft and also helps to reduce bleeding.
She added that the first yellowish milk is full of vitamin A and protects babies against allergies and infections and also helps the babies to pass the first dark stool.
Breastfeeding also prevents the mother from breast and ovarian cancer while protecting the baby against diabetes, hypertension and heart diseases in their later life.
After 6 months, infants should receive complementary foods with continued breastfeeding up to 2 years of age or beyond.
Mrs Sackey again mentioned that breastfeeding is part of the reproductive cycle and women should be able to combine it with paid work without discrimination or disadvantage.
“Breastfeeding and work must be understood as a matter of rights and gender equality; unfortunately, millions of women remain unprotected. Policies and legislation that protect a woman’s right to breastfeed and work are thus essential,” she said.
This year’s World Breastfeeding Week would be launched on Friday, August 18, 2017 at Tarkoradi.
