51pc BD newborns receive breast milk right after birth, says UNICEF analysis

Although women in South Asia are breastfeeding longer than women in any other region in the world, only 51 per cent of newborns are breastfed within an hour after birth in Bangladesh, Unicef said in a new analysis released on Sunday, reports UNB.

In Bangladesh, only 51 per cent newborns are breastfed within an hour of birth while 55 per cent of infants less than 6 months old are exclusively breastfed.

Breastfeeding for a longer period is important for a mother as her risk of developing breast cancer falls by 6 percent if he does it for a year.

At least 98 per cent of children are breastfed at some point in their young lives in Afghanistan (98pc), Bhutan (99pc), Nepal (99pc) and Sri Lanka (99pc), and elsewhere in South Asia the proportion is also high at 94-97 per cent.

While breastfeeding is almost universal in the region, there are still a lot to do to improve the quality of practices. "Breastfeeding is the best gift a mother can give her child, as well as herself," said Jean Gough, Unicef's Regional Director for South Asia.

"As we celebrate Mother's Day, we must give mothers the support they need to start and continue breastfeeding."

"Unicef supports addressing the gaps in breastfeeding practices in Bangladesh. One of current initiative is Mothers@Work programme that supports working mothers in the Bangladesh's garment sector to continue breastfeeding upon returning to work."