Breastfeeding can bring down neonatal deaths: Survey

JESSORE, Aug 6 (BSS): Four million newborn babies die every year in the world and more than one million deaths can be avoided if the newborns are breastfed within one hour of their birth.

According to a survey, conducted by Bangladesh Breastfeeding Foundation (BBF) Monitoring Officer Akram Hossain, the number of breastfeeding cases in Bangladesh rose to 64 percent in 2011 from 43 percent in 2007.

Child and nutrition experts have said breast milk is the best food for the infants and young children and breastfeeding fosters optimal growth and development of a baby's brain.

It is the foremost duty of all mothers to start breastfeeding within one hour of birth, sustain exclusive breastfeeding for six months and continue breastfeeding up to two years or beyond along with providing homemade nutritious complementary foods to the infants, they added.

Kawser, a male baby of eight months at Shanta village of Sharsha upazila, is suffering from moderate malnutrition. Motahar, father of Kawser, said health condition of my child is not well and he often suffers from different diseases.

"After his birth, we have given different liquid foods alongside breastfeeding and now we are giving some complementary foods," he said.

"Now Shasthya Kormis (SKs) and Shasthya Shebikas (SSs) of different non-government organizations look after the health of my baby," Motahar added.

SSs and SKs made it clear to mothers that they could breastfeed their children even when they are out of home. They said the mother could suck their breast milk and keep it in three separate pots so that their babies could take the milk during their works.