First hour of breast-feeding key to child’s survival - Mrs Ambode

The wife of the Lagos State governor, Mrs Bolanle Ambode, has reiterated the need for nursing mothers and pregnant women to always give priority to the first hour of life of their babies, saying this was critical to safeguarding infants’ deaths.

The governor’s wife, in a statement yesterday signed by her spokesperson, Folashade Kadiri, to commemorate the occasion of this year’s World Breast-feeding Week stressed that the breast milk to an infant was too profound to be ignored as it was an important foundation capable of determining whether a baby would live or otherwise.

She added that putting a baby to the breast in the first hour of life was a major safeguard against his/her death, adding that exclusive breast-feeding for babies’ first six months helps them to grow, prevents undernutrition, promotes brain development and reduces the risk of overweight.

“Nothing can compare to the breast milk. No matter the nutritional value of the baby formula, it cannot adequately take the place of breast milk in the life of the new born. God who created it in His own special way to be baby-friendly has made it the most important and most beneficial type of food a baby gets to know. Nursing mothers should not make excuses of their jobs or career for not doing exclusive breastfeeding because the advantages to the baby are too many,” she said.

She described the theme for this year, “Breastfeeding: Foundation for Life”, as apt and the basic truth about the practice.

Mrs Ambode explained breastfeeding was a good bonding between mother and infant, quoting international health bodies that breast feeding practices around the world could save the lives of nearly one million children under five years.