76 percent of children are born in hospital, only 20 percent of babies get breast milk in the first hour

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World Breastfeeding Week is being celebrated all over the world including India. World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year for a week on the initiative of the World Health Organization (WHO). During this, the world is told what are the benefits of breastfeeding. Especially those women who have small children, up to six months. Breastfeeding rates in Jharkhand have improved significantly, but are still well below the national average. Especially in the case of children up to 3 years of age. The country’s statistics show that 41.8 percent of children up to the age of three years are breastfed for 6 months, while in Jharkhand it is 21.5 percent. Not only Jharkhand, there is a need for many reforms in this sector in the whole country. We will talk about reforms later, first talk about the health of children and the importance of breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding awareness has increased in Jharkhand

In Jharkhand, Eastern India, awareness about universal breastfeeding has increased. The latest figures of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) (year 2019-2021) show that the number of infants up to the age of 6 months who are breastfed has increased to 76 percent. This figure was 65 percent in NFHS-4 (year 2015-16). In this way, there has been an improvement of 11 percent in five years.

76% of deliveries under the supervision of trained midwives

Not only this, about 76 percent women in Jharkhand are now giving birth to children in health centers under the supervision of trained midwives. In the year 2015-16, this rate was 62 percent. Although three out of four women deliver in health facilities, only one out of five babies are breastfed within an hour of birth. Experts say that till the age of about 6 months, the necessary energy and nutrients for the baby are mixed with the mother’s milk.

Mother’s milk is complete nutrition for the baby

Mother’s milk provides far more nutrients than whatever you feed or drink outside to your babies. That’s why mother’s milk is called complete nutrition. That’s why you must breastfeed your baby within an hour of birth. This benefits both mother and child. Having worked in the field of child health and nutrition for more than two decades, Bal Raksha Bharat (Save the Children) manager of health and nutrition portfolio for eastern and southern states, Debashmita Bhowmik, says that ensuring the health of the child One of the most effective ways to do it.

Mother’s milk has many qualities

Breastfeeding is an ideal diet for newborns. It is safe, clean. Mother’s milk has many properties, which provide immunity to children. It protects children from many common diseases. Breastfeeding provides the infant with all of their energy and nutrients for the first few months, and provides up to one-third of the nutrients needed for the infant’s nutrition from breast milk in the second half of the first year.

Exclusively breastfeed the baby till 6 months of birth

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, babies should be breastfed within the first hour of birth. They should be fed only mother’s milk for the first 6 months. This means that no other foods including other food or water should be given to the child. The baby should be breastfed frequently during the day. Bottles, sippy, or pacifiers should not be used at all. Safe and adequate complementary feeding should be started only after the age of 6 months. However, if the mother breastfeeds the child till the age of two years, then there will be proper development of the child.

Mothers who breastfeed longer stay healthier

Debashmita Bhowmick explains that longer periods of breastfeeding keep mothers healthy as well. Breastfeeding leads to proper development of the child. It has a positive effect on the health of the mother. Because of this, there is a reduction in the expenditure of the family on the treatment of the infant and the mother. This reduces the expenditure of that family as well as the nation. This improves the economy.

Mother’s milk is the first vaccine for a child.

Vitamins, minerals and other nutrients are found in abundance in mother’s milk. It helps in the healthy development of the baby. The milk received from the mother after delivery is full of nutrients. It has disease resistance. It is also the first vaccine of the child. Mother’s milk naturally has the ability to protect babies from many diseases. The risk of many diseases is also reduced. These include ear infections in children, asthma, lower respiratory tract infections, diarrhea and vomiting, obesity in children and sudden infant death syndrome. Not only this, the intelligence of breastfed babies is higher by 3 to 4 points.

Theme of World Breastfeeding Week 2023

It would be relevant to mention here that during the year 2015-2021, 47 per cent of the babies were breastfed by their mother within an hour of birth. This was much less than the target of 70 per cent. In the same period, the percentage of infants under the age of six months was breastfed at 48. The World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA) has chosen the theme of World Breastfeeding Week 2023 as ‘Enabling breastfeeding: making a difference for working parents’. parents). The aim of this global campaign is to raise awareness about breastfeeding and its benefits.

Central and state governments will have to improve policies

That’s why it is necessary that along with the central government, the state governments should also work continuously to strengthen the health policies. Along with increasing health facilities in hospitals, arrangements should also be made for safe delivery. Not only this, doctors as well as nurses, midwives and community health workers should be trained, so that they can motivate and train mothers to breastfeed. Along with the hospital, she will also help the pregnant women after going home.

The risk of infection in the newborn is less

It has been proved that the risk of infection is less in newborns who drink mother’s milk within one hour of birth. Early breastfeeding reduces infant mortality. Due to breastfeeding, the bonding of the mother and the newborn is strong and the mother can feed the child for a long time. Debashmita Bhowmik says that it does not matter whether the baby is born in a village hut or in a plush city hospital, it is important whether he is able to breastfeed within an hour of birth or not. The survival rate of babies who drink mother’s milk within the first hour of birth increases. They develop rapidly. They stay healthier.

benefits of early breastfeeding

• The risk of infection in the newborn is less.

• Infant mortality rate decreases.

• The bonding of mother and newborn is strengthened.

• The mother can feed the child for a long time.

• The chances of survival of the baby increase.

• Newborn develops rapidly.

• Breastfed babies are healthier.

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