ShareKUWAIT: The World Health Organization (WHO) in Kuwait in collaboration with the Public Authority for Food and Nutrition (PAFN) held a press conference to increase awareness on the importance of breastfeeding to the community on the occasion of the national celebration 'World Breastfeeding Week' under the slogan 'Step Up for Breastfeeding: Educate and Support'. The press conference was hosted at PAFN on Nov 6, 2022. This is a joint campaign between the WHO in Kuwait and PAFN and will run between Nov 6 and 10 through a series of activities targeting the general public about the health benefits of breastfeeding for the community as a whole.
The Public Authority for Food and Nutrition and all concerned partners from the ministry of health and international organizations concerned with mother and child health Kuwait celebrated this occasion as part of the efforts made to enhance the nutrition of infants, young children, mothers and pregnant women.
Dr Mona Al-Sumaie, Coordinator of the Maternal, Infant and Young Child Nutrition Program in Kuwait and the Director of Awareness and Community Nutrition Promotion Department at PAFN, said: "According to statistics, 94 percent of Kuwaiti mothers initiate breastfeeding at birth but only 10 percent are able to continue to breastfeed exclusively at 6 months of age.
According to the recommendation of the WHO, 50 percent of babies should be exclusively breastfed up to the age of 6 months by 2025. Therefore, we will publish and mobilize advocacy to ensure that the rate of exclusive breastfeeding (only breast milk) is increased to six months of age and continued to two years or beyond with the provision of appropriate and safe complementary foods for children."
Dr Sumaie elaborated on the community engagement that PAFN will be implementing during the breastfeeding week. "Encouraging mothers to breastfeed and increasing support from healthcare providers, family and society for the success and continuation of exclusive breastfeeding. The events will include community awareness campaigns about breastfeeding in the facilities of the ministry of health (government hospitals that provide maternal and child services and some primary health centers), in addition to an open day at the Promenade for mothers on Wednesday evening," she said.
Dr Assad Hafeez, the WHO Representative for Kuwait, reiterated: "We must all work as one community to increase the national rates of breastfeeding, for better health and well-being to the future generation of the population in Kuwait." Dr Hafeez also commented on the health benefits of breastmilk. "The best milk for babies is breastmilk, meeting all of the babies' nutritional needs.
Babies that are breastfed are protected from long-term and short-term diseases at a lower risk of asthma, obesity and type 1 diabetes. Breastmilk contains antibodies which will make babies’ immune system stronger and well protected from any future illness. It has also been proven that breastfeeding has health benefits to the mother as it reduces several types of cancer such as breast and ovarian cancer, as well as type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure."
It is noteworthy to mention the WHO Kuwait Country Office collaborated with the PAFN during the month of October to increase the national rates of breastfeeding by targeting private hospitals across Kuwait through an orientation program of the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) which aims to ensure that mothers and newborns receive timely and appropriate care before and during their stay in a facility providing maternity and newborn services, to enable the establishment of optimal feeding of newborns, which promotes their health and development. WHO Kuwait and PAFN will continue to work collaboratively to promote the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (UNSDG 3) by promoting health and well-being in the community in Kuwait through various initiatives.
