UNICEF and WHO World Breastfeeding Week message for 2016
Exclusive breastfeeding can promote birth-spacing—enabling women to delay subsequent pregnancy and empowering them to exercise greater reproductive autonomy, especially in countries and communities where women have limited access to quality contraceptive information and care….(emphasis added)
The evidence that breastfeeding benefits women, children, as well as communities and societies, has never been stronger—but breastfeeding rates have remained stagnant for the last 20 years. Too many children are missing out on this tremendous boost to their health and wellbeing. Too many women are not receiving the information and support they need to breastfeed successfully. (Signed by Mr. Anthony Lake, UNICEF Executive Director and Dr. Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General)
Sheila: I encourage those who give to missionary organizations to contact them and ask about their promotion of breastfeeding in this country and other countries. Encourage them to read the report.
New mothers need encouragement and support to breastfeed their babies; they don’t need free or expensive formula. New mothers-to-be should also be taught ecological breastfeeding which offers more extended baby spacing than what exclusive breastfeeding provides. God has a plan for both mother and baby via breastfeeding and natural spacing is one of those benefits.
Next time you receive a missionary appeal, use it as an opportunity to help those missionaries to promote breastfeeding which offers better health and lower costs.
Black Breastfeeding Week nationwide begins this Thursday, August 25. Some of our readers might be interested in our black breastfeeding brochure.
Sheila Kippley