Communities around the world are working hard to bring back the breastfeeding culture.
India began measuring breastfeeding rates in 1992-93, when the first National Family Health Survey (NFHS) took place in the country, and since then several surveys have revealed that Indian rates of breastfeeding are stagnant. What does that mean? Out of 26 million babies born 20 million are not able to practice optimal feeding guidelines as recommended by the Government of India and the World Health Organisation.
But there is a silver lining – the rates are not falling as they were during the 1970s and 80s. That is an achievement for India, but should India design efforts to increase the breastfeeding rates? The answer should be yes, as exclusive breastfeeding during the first six months not only increases the chances of survival of a baby but it also ends up giving the baby a head start as the brain develops faster during the first year of life.
The baby food industry may want it otherwise by aggressively promoting alternatives to mother’s milk as well as homemade complementary foods for children aged between six months and 24 months. India has had a policy for the last 20 years, called the Infant Milk Substitutes Feeding Bottles, and Infant Foods (Regulation of Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 1992 and Amendment, Act 2003 (also known as the IMS Act), but it needs to effectively enforced. We no longer see babies in TV or print ads, thanks to the law. However, the baby food industry still needs to be checked effectively in order to increase rates of optimal feeding guidelines. That’s why the WBW 2012 builds on ‘Babies need Mom-made, not Man-made’.
The Indian policy should go all out to support all women during first the two years of their babies' life. That is the stated focus of the newly restructured Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) programme worth Rs 1.25 lac crore. It needs to look at how mothers and babies can be together for at least the first six months in all homes, whether poor or rich.
India’s policy needs to be coherent when it comes to the health system's support to breastfeeding women. Having the Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) should ensure that all women can begin breastfeeding within one hour. Private hospitals routinely offer formula to newborn babies and people think its ‘modern’. That must stop, and can be curbed by a law.
A uniform policy of building a better skilled healthcare workforce is needed to enable them to help and support women at both at birth and later, in the health facility as well as at the family level. “Government can take a call on this and universalise access to skilled counselling, the proven and tested method to increase breastfeeding rates,” said Dr M M A Faridi, head, department of pediatrics, University College of Medical Sciences (UCMS) and Guru Teg Bahadur (GTB) Hospital, Delhi. He further said it requires investment of resources both human and financial for breastfeeding to improve the social and health status of the nation.
Indian policy on maternity protection needs a careful look at what is being done. While Central Government employees get six months paid maternity leave and two years of childcare leave, what about the remaining 90 per cent of moms who work in the non-government sector?
What can the government do? Dr Arun Gupta, member of the Prime Minister’s Council on India’s Nutrition Challenges, said, “Get a policy on Breastfeeding and Infant and Young Child Feeding in place, along with a plan of action and attached budget line both in the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) and ICDS. When you begin tracking your money it works.”
The World Breastfeeding Week is an opportunity that the national and state governments should capture and make the most out of it. The World Breastfeeding Conference, with the tagline ‘Babies Need Mom Made Not Man Made’, will be held in New Delhi, India, from December 6-9, 2012.
