World Breastfeeding Week aims to highlight the huge benefits that breastfeeding can bring to the health and welfare of babies and benefits to maternal health, focusing on good nutrition, poverty reduction, and food security.
World breastfeeding week has the dual goal of improving the health of babies and promoting, protecting, and supporting the rights of women to breastfeed anywhere and at any time.
Breastfeeding promotes better health for mothers and children alike. Breastfeeding decreases the risk of mothers developing breast cancer, ovarian cancer, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease.
Word Breastfeeding Week is organised every year by the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA), a global network that aims to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding around the world. WABA collaborates with the World Health Organization and UNICEF to make sure that aid is given to the right people, in the right communities.
Empower Parents, Enable Breastfeeding Every year World Breastfeeding week has a theme, and this year's slogan is "Empower Parents, Enable Breastfeeding". "Empowering parents" requires relevant, up to date information, education, and support to create an enabling environment, where mothers can feel empowered and supported to breastfeed.
The slogan was chosen to be inclusive of all types of parents in today's world. Focusing on supporting both parents in reaching their breastfeeding goals and feel empowered is vital to this initiative.
Mothers also need access to a parent-friendly workplace so that they can continue to breastfeed upon returning to work. To support Mums returning to work, employers should ensure Mums have adequate breastfeeding breaks, access to a safe, private, and hygienic space for expressing and storing breastmilk as well as affordable childcare.
When we empower the family, workplaces, governments, and communities support them. When we remove the barriers to breastfeeding, we "enable breastfeeding." We can all become a change catalyst and be part of the movement to help support a mother to breastfeed. We all play an important role in the protection, promotion, and support of breastfeeding.
Aims of World Breastfeeding Week v To support mothers through peer groups to promote, establish, and carry on breastfeeding by informing families of the benefits of Peer Counseling. v To educate and train health care practitioners to provide support to mothers and babies in effective ways. v Call governments to action to recognise the importance of the protection and promotion of breastfeeding and provide legislation to support a breastfeeding mother. v To deepen knowledge within the community to enhance, promote, and protect breastfeeding.
