World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated annually around the world from 1 – 7 August and calls for government policymakers and international organisations to promote, protect and support breastfeeding. World Breastfeeding Week is now celebrated in over 170 countries by more than 1.5 million individuals, with a reach of up to 30 million through mainstream and social media.
The theme for 2016 is ‘Breastfeeding: A Key to Sustainable Development’ and focuses on links between breastfeeding and development. This is on the back of new evidence from The Lancet[i] which confirms that optimal breastfeeding could save 823,000 child lives and add $302 billion to the global economy annually.
“Breastfeeding is important for the short and long-term health of babies, and their mothers but is even more critical for women and their babies in developing countries,” says Professor Caroline Homer, Director of the UTS Centre for Midwifery, Child and Family Health.
“We see this clearly in our maternal and child health initiative work led by the UTS World Health Organization's Collaborating Centre for Nursing, Midwifery and Health in Papua New Guinea, Burma and surrounding countries,” said Professor Homer.
The UTS World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Development is one of only two nursing and midwifery 'institutions of excellence' in Australia formally recognised by WHO as part of its global network of collaborating centres in nursing and midwifery.
While public health authorities recommend that babies are exclusively breastfed for 6 months and continue breastfeeding until they are two years old, less than 40 per cent of babies under six months of age are currently exclusively breastfed in Australia.
One of the major reasons women say they stop breastfeeding is because they are returning to work. And with almost one in four Australian mums returning to work in the first six months, workplaces can make a big difference. Studies have found that women who are supported in breastfeeding their babies by their employers are more likely to return to work after maternity leave.
In another study, nearly two-thirds of mothers who knew their workplace had a breastfeeding policy were exclusively breastfeeding at six months. Research also indicates that employees with breastfed babies take less time off work to care for sick infants than their non-breastfeeding counterparts.
UTS support its staff and students to continue breastfeeding upon return to work or study by providing comfortable and private spaces for mothers to breastfeed or express in. Employees are also eligible for up to 30 days paid leave for phased return to work, which can support women to establish successful breastfeeding patterns in the longer term.
Byline: Jo Tilly
[i] Rollins, N C et al, 2016, Why invest, and what will it take to improve breastfeeding practices. The Lancet, Vol 387, Issue 10017, 475-490.