By Linda Naa Deide Aryeetey
Accra, Aug. 30 . GNA- Ghana has launched this year’s Breastfeeding (BF) awareness month with a call on employers to create breastfeeding rooms and flexible working hours for working lactating mothers.
Dr Delese Mimi Darko, the Chief Executive Officer of the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), who made the call, said such environments would make breastfeeding a natural and sustainable choice for working breastfeeding mothers.
She said creating a breastfeeding-friendly environment for mothers was not just an obligation, but an investment in the future, health, and well-being of the public.
“Time and space constraints together with societal expectations can hinder the continuation of breastfeeding and it is our collective duty to create an environment that encourages mothers to breastfeed without compromising their carriers,” she said.
Dr Darko said exclusive breastfeeding in the first six months was unique to the survival of babies and ensured that they thrived and transformed societies.
“Breast milk is readily available; it provides adequate nutrition for children and delivers emotional bonding between mothers and children., “she stated.
The FDA CEO observed that many parents, particularly working mothers, faced challenges juggling their professional responsibilities while providing adequate nutrition to their children, through breastfeeding practices.
She asked men to support such women, saying: “Research has shown that partner support is critical to the success of breastfeeding. ”
She said the FDA was engaging stakeholders and policymakers to implement provisions in Ghana’s Breastfeeding Promotion Regulations, 2000, to ensure that breast milk substituted product information was not misleading.
“We will continue to monitor advertisements in the traditional and social media to ensure babies get the best nutrition to grow well,” she said.
Dr. Kofi Issah, Head of the Family Health Division at the Ghana Health Service, congratulated corporate institutions that had set up breastfeeding rooms for lactating mothers and urged others to do the same.
He said breast milk promoted the cognitive functions of babies, good health and reduced illness, which translated into a reproductive population.
“The role the women play in nurturing the workforce of the country for economic development is very critical and they must not be left in the dark when it comes to feeding their children,” he said.
Dr Francis Kasolo, the World Health Organisation (WHO) representative to Ghana, said optimal breastfeeding practices included early initiation within the first hour of birth, exclusive breastfeeding for six months and appropriate complementary feeding with continued breastfeeding for up to two years.
He said breastfeeding practices were among the most effective interventions to protect children from everyday causes of death, including complications from prematurity, newborn infections, pneumonia, and diarrhoea.
Breastmilk, according to the WHO is the ideal food for infants, it is safe, clean and contains antibodies, which help to protect against many common childhood illnesses.
Breastmilk provides all the energy and nutrients that the infant needs for the first months of life, and it continues to provide up to half or more of a child’s nutritional needs.
Breastfed children perform better on intelligence tests, are less likely to be overweight or obese and less prone to diabetes later in life.
Women who breastfeed also have a reduced risk of breast and ovarian cancers.
GNA