Ultimate health: Amazing facts about breastfeeding

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Are you pregnant, or have you recently had a baby? Are you breastfeeding? Is your your wife breastfeeding?

What do you know about the importance and benefits of breastfeeding? Does the mother or child suffer any consequences if milk formulas are substituted for breast milk?

Is breastfeeding inconvenient, old fashioned and outmoded?

Ghana will join the world to observe WORLD BREASTFEEDING WEEK from August 1-7 2014 under the theme: ‘Breastfeeding, A Winning Goal For Life’ in Accra.

Did you know that breastfeeding reduces a mothers’ risk of getting ovarian and breast cancer, as well as osteoporosis?? YES it does!!!

MORE AMAZING BREASTFEEDING FACTS:-

Exclusive breastfeeding during the day and at night for the first six months after childbirth provides babies with colostrum that protects them from many diseases & promotes healthy development!

Research findings from the Kintampo Health Research Centre shows that ONE MILLION INFANT LIVES COULD BE SAVED BY STARTING BREASTFEEDING WITHIN ONE HOUR OF BIRTH !!!

Did you also know that breastfeeding prevents immediate pregnancy after childbirth during that period. Yes! NATURAL BIRTH CONTROL ! FREE!!!

Exclusive breastfeeding and continued breastfeeding helps to improve maternal mortality by decreasing bleeding after delivery and facilitating the delivery of the placenta. It also reduces malnutrition which is linked to about 50 to 60 per cent of under-five mortality!!

Despite the known health benefits, less than 40% of infants under six months are exclusively breastfed! Sadly, Ghana's Exclusive Breastfeeding (EBF) rates dropped drastically from 63.7 per cent in 2008 to 46 per cent in 2011 according to the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS).

This could spell doom for the future in the area of health, as the gains made over the years are gradually being eroded, says Dr Gloria Quansah-Asare, Deputy Director-General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS).

Also, many mothers face challenges at work and need support to sustain exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of their babies’ lives.

According to ILO Convention 183, a woman worker has the right to one or more daily breaks or a daily reduction of working hours in order to breast feed her child. Did you know this?

We know that EVERY Ghanaian woman works!!! Interestingly, ILO Convention 183 also stipulates maternity leave of at least 14 weeks, of which six weeks leave must be taken following birth.

What peculiar challenges do our mothers face when it comes to exclusive breast feeding ? Who taught you how to breastfeed your child? Are you doing the right thing? How do you express & store breast milk? How exclusive is exclusive? Hey, what role do men/fathers play?

Tune in to Ultimate Health at 2.05pm with Nortey Dua as he milks more information on Breastfeeding from Veronica Gomez, an Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) Consultant & Breastfeeding Co-ordinator for the Ghana Health Service (GHS).

Send your questions, concerns and experiences on BREASTFEEDING by txt to 1422, on Facebook/Joy99.7 and Whatsapp 0244340437.

ULTIMATE HEALTH, YOUR ULTIMATE GUIDE TO HEALTHY LIVING! Every Tuesday @ 2.05pm with NORTEY DUA. Ultimate Health - INFORMING & TRANSFORMING LIVES!!!

ULTIMATE HEALTH is proudly sponsored by PEPSODENT , LIFEBUOY SOAP, and NO YAWA.

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