37% of mothers unable to practice exclusive breastfeeding attributed to family members, Health Care Assistance and 3 months maternity leave.

As part of activities marking this year's World Breastfeeding Week celebration, Health Promotion Watch Ghana (NGO) in collaboration with Ghana Health Service, Ledzokuku Municipal Health Directorate and LEKMA Hospital has organized Breastfeeding Café Program on 02/08/11 at LEKMA Hospital Teshie.

World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year from 1 to 7 August in more than 170 countries to encourage breastfeeding and improve the health of babies around the world. It commemorates the Innocenti Declaration made by World Health Organization and UNICEF policy-makers in August 1990 to protect, promote and support breastfeeding.

The Breastfeeding Café provided a place where new and expectant mothers', husbands, fathers, youth and the general public got free professional advice on breastfeeding. The participants numbering over three hundred (300) mostly mothers received a one on one counseling on breastfeeding.

Miss Lucy Ofori, Miss Wilhelmina Owusu, Mr Theophilos Ofosuhene and Mr. Isaac Kwarteng who are Trained Breastfeeding Advocates from Health Promotion Watch Ghana provided the counseling to the participants. The participants were advised to give only breast milk to their babies for the first six month. From the age of six months, babies need a variety of additional foods, but breastfeeding should continue through the child's second year and beyond. Newborn babies should be kept close to their mothers and begin breastfeeding immediately after birth.

Breastfeeding makes the baby healthy and strong, exclusive breastfeeding can give a woman more than 98 percent protection against pregnancy for six months after giving birth – but only if her menstrual periods have not resumed, if her baby breastfeeds frequently day and night, and if the baby is not given any other food or drinks, or a pacifier or dummy, breastfeeding brings about bonding between the mother and the baby, were some examples of advantages of breastfeeding that mothers were taught during the program.

A formative research conducted during the Breastfeeding Café program about why 37% of mothers do not practice exclusive breastfeeding (According to Ghana Health Service) came out with these outcomes;

More than two hundred mothers took part in the research by which 55% blamed family member s particularly in-laws and husbands as being a stumbling block to practicing exclusive breastfeeding. 30% of the participants blamed Health Care Assistants who promotes breast milk substitutes as the cause. 15% attributed the cause to the three months maternity leave as being too short.

The participants recommended more educational programs for family members and Health Care Assistance on breastfeeding. They also called for at least six month of maternity leave

This year's event is being celebrated under the theme: Talk to me about Breastfeeding; a 3D Experience.

Issued: 04/08/11
By: Health Promotion Watch Ghana
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