The World Health Organization recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life, followed by continued breastfeeding with appropriate complementary foods for up to 2 years and beyond. WHO also recommends early and uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact, rooming-in and kangaroo mother care which significantly improve neonatal survival and reduce morbidity.All mothers should be supported to initiate breastfeeding as soon as possible after birth, within the first hour after delivery and should receive practical support to enable them to initiate and establish breastfeeding and manage common breastfeeding difficulties.
Skilled breastfeeding counselling is key to improving breastfeeding rates. Improving access to skilled counselling for breastfeeding can extend the duration of breastfeeding and promote exclusive breastfeeding, with benefits for babies, families and economies. During the CoVID-19 pandemic, more than ever, mothers need access to skilled support for breastfeeding. The pandemic has resulted in health workers being diverted to the response and overburdened health systems. Health care services aimed at supporting mothers to breastfeed, including counselling and skilled lactation support are strained. Infection prevention measures, such as physical distancing make it difficult for community counselling and mother-to-mother support services to continue. Therefore, countries must implement innovative solutions including e counselling and support to provide skilled breastfeeding support to mothers.
Source: https://pmnch.who.int/news-and-events/events/item/2022/08/01/international-days/world-breastfeeding-week-2022
