Recognizing World Breastfeeding Week in Early August: UNICEF’s Call to Action
Celebrating World Breastfeeding Week in August calendar’s first week, UNICEF urges increased initiatives from both public and private sectors, fostering support for all nursing mothers, especially working moms, to successfully exclusively breastfeed their infants.
Despite recent data evidencing a doubling in exclusive breastfeeding rates in Thailand over the past few years, UNICEF Representative for Thailand, Kyungsun Kim, voiced concerns over numerous children still missing out on the optimal start in life. She remarked, “Breastmilk is akin to a mother’s superpower. Yet, speaking from personal experience, breastfeeding certainly isn’t always a walk in the park. Pulling off a successful six-month exclusive breastfeeding stint, in particular, can prove quite the challenge, especially for working mothers. For successful breastfeeding, mothers require support from family, healthcare professionals, employers, and colleagues. With this, they can provide their infants with the best nutrition for their maximal development.”
Breastmilk is essentially organic superfood for infants, brimming with all the vital nutrients necessary for their growth and development. Breastfed children manifest a lesser likelihood of wasting and stunting, and display improved cognitive outcomes as compared to their non-breastfed counterparts. UNICEF and The World Health Organization recommend that mothers initiate breastfeeding within the first hour post-childbirth and continue exclusive breastfeeding for six months. Post these six months, it’s recommended that mothers supplement breastfeeding with the introduction of age-appropriate food up until the child reaches two years of age.
As a part of the celebration, Unicef Thailand is set to launch a social media campaign labeled “The Masterpiece”. This initiative aims at bolstering public consciousness that breastfeeding is a collective responsibility. The campaign cleverly utilizes tributes to iconic global artwork, subtly modified, to reinforce the significance of breastfeeding. They emphasize breastfeeding’s crucial role throughout human history.
Nevertheless, contemporary society presents nursing mothers with numerous obstacles to breastfeeding. Some face difficulties in procuring timely assistance from healthcare workers to tackle lactation issues upon their return home post-hospital discharge. Marketing strategies promoting infant formula have instilled misconceptions among families that formula equates to the efficacy of breastmilk, further lessening familial support for breastfeeding.
Moreover, countless mothers grapple with the continuation of breastfeeding upon their return to work, as their workplaces leave much to be desired in providing adequate support for them to continue breastfeeding.
UNICEF implores for more robust family-friendly workplace policies, acting as stepping stones towards children getting the best start in life. This includes encouraging employers to offer at least six-month paid parental leave, designate special breastfeeding rooms and breaks, and provide affordable quality childcare services.
Kyungsun Kim added, “The onus of ensuring that every child is provided with the opportunity to have the best start in life isn’t solely on mothers. This responsibility is a collective one and the smartest human investment towards our societies’ shared future.”
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