World Breastfeeding Week Celebrated every year from August 1 to August 7. The aim of this week is to highlight the importance of breastfeeding. Breast milk contains all the essential nutrients that are required for the healthy growth of babies. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), breast milk is the ideal food for babies. It is safe, hygienic and contains antibodies that help protect against many common childhood diseases.

The WHO says breast milk can have long-term health benefits, such as a reduced risk of becoming overweight or obese and a reduced risk of developing non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and some cancers later in life. Breast milk prevents newborns from getting sick and helps keep them protected throughout their infancy and childhood. It is particularly effective against infectious diseases as it strengthens the immune system by transferring antibodies directly from the mother. Breastfeeding is also an integral part of the reproductive process which has a significant impact on mothers’ health.

It is important that you exclusively breastfeed for 6 months, then introduce complementary foods and continue breastfeeding your baby until the age of 2. But first, let’s understand what exclusive breastfeeding is.

According to WHO, exclusive breastfeeding means that no other food or drink, not even water, should be given except for rehydration solutions (ORS), drops and syrups (vitamins, minerals and medicines) for the first 6 months of life, except for breast milk. However, exclusive breastfeeding is not the same as exclusive breastfeeding.

It is recommended that the baby be exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of life.

Prevalent breastfeeding is when the infant’s main source of nutrition is breast milk. Along with breast milk, the infant may also drink fluids including water and water-based beverages, fruit juices, nutritional fluids and ORS, drops or syrups.

Here’s a look at the optimal duration of breastfeeding according to the World Health Organisation and UNICEF.

• Initiate breastfeeding within one hour of birth.
• Exclusively breastfeed your babies for the first 6 months of their lives for optimal development, growth, and health.
• Unrestricted exclusive breastfeeding results in abundant milk production.
• If you are seriously ill or have complications that prevent you from caring for your baby or continuing breastfeeding directly, express milk to safely breastfeed your baby.
• If you are unable to breastfeed or express breast milk, you may want to consider the possibility of relactation, which includes restarting breastfeeding after a break, wet nursing, where another woman breastfeeds or cares for your baby, or using donor human milk.

Here’s how exclusive breastfeeding during the first six months benefits your baby.

When you breastfeed your baby, it reduces your baby’s risk of certain diseases and strengthens his immune system. According to the Cleveland Clinic, breastfeeding helps reduce the risk of the following conditions.

• Diarrhea, vomiting, and premature necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC).
• Respiratory infections such as pneumonia, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and whooping cough
• ear infections
• bacterial meningitis
• Asthma
• Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and Infant Mortality
• childhood obesity
• Itching
• type 2 diabetes later in life
• Leukemia (childhood)
• Tooth decay in babies under one year of age and future dental problems
• Celiac disease and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Studies show that breastfed babies have lower rates of hospitalisation and better health outcomes.

What are the components of breast milk?

Breast milk contains several important ingredients that your baby needs. Here, take a look at them.

• Carbohydrates that maintain a healthy balance of bacteria in your baby’s gut.
• Fats that help develop your baby’s brain and nervous system.
• Proteins that help protect your baby from infections.
• Vitamins that help in the growth of your baby.
• White blood cells that help fight infection.

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