We all know that breastfeeding is the single most amazing thing you can do for your newborn baby’s health.
And the sooner your baby gets fed those powerful and magical drops, the better. In fact, according to a new press release by The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) delaying breastfeeding anything from two to 23 hours after birth increases the risk of dying in the first 28 days of life by 40 per cent. Delaying it by 24 hours or more increases that risk by a whopping 80 percent.
The real problem according to France Bégin, UNICEF Senior Nutrition Adviser, is that some 77 million of the world’s newborns – or 1 in 2 – are not breastfed within the first hour of birth, depriving them of essential nutrients and antibodies and thus exposing them to an increased risk of death.
“Early breastfeeding can make the difference between life and death,” Bégin said recently in a press release.
“If all babies are fed nothing but breastmilk from the moment they are born until they are six months old, over 800,000 lives would be saved every year,” she added.
Breastmilk is indeed a baby’s very first vaccine, the first and best protection they have against illness and disease. Putting the baby to the breast also provides them with the essential nutrients, antibodies and skin-to-skin contact with their mother that protects them from disease.
Particularly concerning is the situation in sub-Saharan Africa, where under-five mortality rates are the highest worldwide; and early breastfeeding rates have increased just 10 percentage points since 2000. Even in South Asia, where the rates of early breastfeeding initiation tripled in 15 years, from 16 percent in 2000 to 45 percent in 2015, the increase is far from enough: 21 million newborns still wait too long before they are breastfed.
A major problem UNICEF found is that women are not getting the help they need to start breastfeeding immediately after birth even when a doctor, nurse or midwife is assisting their delivery. For instance, In the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia, women who deliver with a skilled birth attendant are less likely to initiate breastfeeding in the first hour of life, compared to women who deliver with unskilled attendants or relatives.
UNICEF has presented this information against the backdrop of the upcoming World Breastfeeding Week, which is celebrated annually from 1 to 7 August in over 170 countries to promote breastfeeding and improve infant nutrition.
