Breastfeeding is not just a one woman job
It requires encouragement and support from skilled counsellors, family members, health care providers, employers, policymakers and others
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Breastfeeding gives all children the healthiest start in life. Breastmilk acts as a baby’s first vaccine, stimulates brain development, and protects a woman’s health. When mothers breastfeed, everyone benefits. Breastfeeding leads to lower health care costs, healthier families, and a smarter workforce.
But breastfeeding is not just a one woman job. It requires encouragement and support from skilled counsellors, family members, health care providers, employers, policymakers and others.
Yet, only 40 per cent of children under six months of age are fed only breastmilk. UNICEF and WHO are leading a Global Breastfeeding Collective to increase political commitment for breastfeeding—one of the smartest investments a country can make. The initiative aims to increase early initiation, exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life and continued breastfeeding for up to two years or beyond, together with appropriate, adequate and safe complementary foods.
We call upon implementers and donors from governments, philanthropies, international organizations, civil society to:
- Increase funding to raise breastfeeding rates from birth through two years
- Fully implement the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes and relevant World Health Assembly resolutions through strong legal measures that are enforced and independently monitored by organizations free from conflicts of interest.
- Enact paid family leave and workplace breastfeeding policies.
- Implement the ‘Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding’ in maternity facilities.
- Improve access to skilled breastfeeding counselling in health facilities.
- Strengthen links between health facilities and communities to support breastfeeding.
- Monitor the progress of policies, programmes and funding for breastfeeding.
Increasing rates of breastfeeding could:
- Save the lives of more than 820,000 children under age five, annually.
- Prevent 20,000 breast cancer deaths.
- Save hundreds of millions of dollars in health care costs.
- Generate US $302 billion annually in additional income—nearly 0.5 per cent of the world GNI.
In addition:
- Breastfeeding is associated with an IQ increase of 3 to 4 points.
- Only 40 per cent of children younger than six months are exclusively breastfed.
