To coincide with the World Breastfeeding Week, healthcare providers in the country joins the global community to highlight the significant health benefits of breastfeeding.
This year, the week is being held under the theme ‘Empower Parents. Enable Breastfeeding.’
Activities by the Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) and Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) and Sidra Medicine are being held until August 7, on social media and across the institutions for staff, patients and visitors.
Sidra Medicine’s Health Promotion and Lactation team is marking World Breastfeeding Week 2019 with several events.
It held a workshop on breastfeeding for expectant mothers and fathers on Saturday at the Qatar National Library. Also a public information booth was set up yesterday at the outpatient clinic plaza educating the families and parents about benefits of breastfeeding.
Further, in line with this year’s theme ‘Empower Parents. Enable Breastfeeding,’ Sidra Medicine shared thoughts of parents’ especially fathers’ —about breastfeeding.
“As a father and husband, I believe we men can help our families benefit from the wonderful strengths of breastfeeding by giving our love, feeding our babies expressed breast milk when available,” said father of an infant in Sidra Medicine’s social media accounts.
The PHCC has held several awareness events across health centres to educate the visitors and mothers about the benefits of breastfeeding.
The Women’s Wellness and Research Center (WWRC), part of Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) marks World Breastfeeding Week with community events. Dr. Amal Abu Bakr, Lead Lactation Consultant and Chairperson of the Breastfeeding Committee at the WWRC said that breast milk provides protective immunity against infections and chronic diseases like obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and childhood leukemia, all of which are potential causes of child mortality.
“Breast milk contains all the nutrients that are needed for a child’s optimal growth and development. The cholesterol and fatty acids in breast milk are scientifically proven to promote strong immunity and higher intelligence in children. The WHO states that more than 823,000 child and 20,000 maternal deaths could be avoided each year if we strictly implement optimal breastfeeding, especially among babies up to six months of age. The WHO also recommends that babies should continue to be breastfed for up to two years of age with the addition of timely, healthy, supplementary foods,” said Dr. Abu Bakr.
World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year between August 1 and 7 to encourage breastfeeding and improve the health of babies around the world. This year, WHO is working with Unicef and partners to promote the importance of family-friendly policies to enable breastfeeding and help parents nurture and bond with their children in early life, when it matters most.
This includes enacting paid maternity leave for a minimum of 18 weeks, and paid paternity leave to encourage shared responsibility of caring for their children on an equal basis. Mothers also need access to a parent friendly workplace to protect and support their ability to continue breastfeeding upon return to work by having access to breastfeeding breaks; a safe, private, and hygienic space for expressing and storing breastmilk; and affordable childcare.
According to available data, a study conducted by government healthcare entities says that just 29 percent of mothers breastfeed in Qatar during the first six months of an infant’s life, while worldwide the average rate is 37 percent.
To enhance the breastfeeding rates in the country, several steps have been taken including the baby-friendly hospital initiative, which promotes breastfeeding.
