Kolkata (WB), 07 August 2024: West Bengal government has begun to involve fathers, male members and other family members to promote early breastfeeding and exclusive breastfeeding of the children till six months of age.

"Breastfeeding should not be discussed with the mothers alone. Workers at anganwadis have begun to discuss the benefits of breastfeeding to the fathers of the newborn and other family members. This awareness building exercise should start immediately with the conception of a child so that the entire family comes forward in helping the mother into breastfeeding," Dr Shashi Panja, state minister of Women and Child Development and Social Welfare, said at a programme here on Friday.

Speaking at the programme organised by UNICEF, in collaboration with The Bengal Obstetric and Gynaecological Society, to observe World Breastfeeding Week, she said, "In the past seven days starting on August 1, family members were being told how to take care of the would-be mother during pregnancy and importance of breastfeeding."

"Thus an attempt has been made to bring the community forward in helping the mother into exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of her child's life," Dr Panja said.

Stating that 53 per cent of the mothers still need to exclusively breastfeed their children for the first six months, she said that her department will percolate this data at the field level to boost breastfeeding.

According to her, anganwadis in the state discussed breastfeeding benefits with would-be mothers and fathers and new fathers and key decision makers in the family like the mothers-in-law in the discussion.

Being a doctor herself, she urged the doctors and nurses present to spread the need for colostrum feeding within an hour of a child's birth and its benefits.

"Feed only the mother's milk to the baby for the first six months and nothing else, not even water. Even in case of caesarean babies, breastfeeding has to be initiated within an hour of childbirth with the support of others present at the labour room or operation theatre of government or private hospital," she said.

Highlighting the importance of telling ten benefits of breastfeeding to the family by doctors who promote it, Dr Md Monjur Hossain, Chief of UNICEF in West Bengal also urged the fathers to help a new mother in breastfeeding.

"It is not only a mother's responsibility alone. A few years ago during my work in a South-East Asian country, fathers were asked to use their chests to care for the babies like the mothers to increase their participation. Breastfeeding creates a psychological bond between a mother and the child and it also stops excess carbon emissions by preventing fuel burning to boil non-human milk," he said.

UNICEF, being a technical organisation of the United Nations, has been promoting a community-based approach to bring solutions to public health issues. "Community sensitization is a major strategy to promote a practice like breastfeeding," Dr Hossain said.

Dr Basab Mukherjee, President of The Bengal Obstetric and Gynaecological Society, said that the gynaecologists and obstetricians of the state have carried out programmes to build awareness surrounding benefits of breastfeeding in the medical colleges of the state in the first week of August.

"Skin-to-skin contact along with suckling at the breast stimulates the mother’s production of breast milk, including colostrum. It is the baby’s ‘first vaccine’ which is extremely rich in nutrients and antibodies," he said.