‘Nurture Run’ set on April 13 to promote breastfeeding during emergencies

When mothers are expected to be successful not only in their careers but also in child-rearing, women often find themselves giving up breastfeeding to save time and be free of discomfort. For the go-getter mom, attending to office backlogs after a maternity leave is top priority.
 
Yet research shows that skipping on breastfeeding is akin to skipping on its wonderful benefits. The World Health Organization emphasizes that breastfeeding, and not formula feeding, has to be the standard way of nourishing babies.
 
“Breastfeeding has always been the physiological norm. However, over the past hundred years or so, artificial feeding had become so ubiquitous in many developed world settings, as to be widely viewed as the standard way to feed infants,” according to a 2008 WHO report.
 
The WHO found that breastfed infants from various ethnic backgrounds in numerous locations in the world are more likely to grow and develop healthier than their non-breastfed counterparts. The richest yet cheapest source of nutrients for infants, breastfeeding lessens your child’s risks of being counted among 186 million malnourished children in the world, according to a 2010 World Health Statistics estimate.
 
Breastfeeding and UNICEF advocate Iza Abeja believes every mother, including career women and professionals, must choose to practice breastfeeding as benefits significantly outweigh inconveniences. “Breastfeeding is the most natural and richest source of nourishment for children yet it’s becoming just an option and not the norm. It is normal to breastfeed our kids, it’s always been. And yet we are made to think that alternative sources of milk are better than it. Breastfeeding scientifically produces more intelligent and more balanced individuals.”
 
Abeja, who practiced breastfeeding for her son and daughter until they were 6 years old, was named UN Millenium Development Goals Ambassador on Child Food Security and Nutrition in 2012. She is executive director of Beauty, Brains & Breastfeeding, Inc., a nonprofit and lactation consulting organization, which was the main proponent of the DILG memorandum circular urging all local government units to strengthen their breastfeeding campaign. BBB will hold its 2nd Annual Breastfeeding Run called “Nurture Run” on April 13, 2014, Sunday, 5:30 AM at the Quezon City Memorial Circle with the theme “Awareness for Breastfeeding during Emergency and in the Workplace.”
 
In a 2000 study published on Pediatrics, S. Arora et. al. investigated why women decide for or against breastfeeding. In order of importance, the top five reasons women give for deciding to breastfeed are  (1) its benefits for the infant’s health, (2) it is “natural,” (3) it strengthens bonding with their infant, (4) is convenient, and (5) has benefits for their own health.              
 
By contrast, the top five factors discouraging breastfeeding are (1) opposition by the baby’s father, (2) concerns that the baby is not getting enough milk, (3) the need to return to work, (4) discomfort while breastfeeding, and (5) the misconception that breastfeeding will adversely change the appearance of the breasts.
 
Turns out that the latter set of reasons are mostly based on misconceptions, and that an extensive body of research favors breastfeeding for mothers and children alike:
 
1) Build your child’s stronger immune system.
 
Consultants from UNICEF Philippines (www.unicef.ph), public health nutritionist Ali Maclaine and nutrition specialist Elham Monsef, found that in ordinary and crisis settings, breastfeeding protects infants “by providing them with the right balance of nutrients and fluids and contains anti-infective properties that protect an infant from pathogens in the environment.”
 
Non-breastfed infants, on the other hand, are “extremely vulnerable especially during emergencies” as they are 50 times more likely to be hospitalized from diarrhea and suffer from malnourishment which leads to death.
 
2) Save your child from weight-related diseases in adulthood.
 
The 2008 WHO report also emphasizes how breastfeeding can be a long-term investment on children, saving them from negative later-life health consequences. “In developed world contexts, infants who are not breastfed are much more likely to become adults who are overweight, obese, hypertensive and suffer from elevated cholesterol.”
 
3) Develop a bond that makes your child healthier and happier.
 
The emotional bond created between the mother and child during breastfeeding helps improve children’s emotional quotient (EQ). Even when it’s limited to the infant’s formative years, breastfeeding develops more mature and confident adults, which lessens risks of depression and the psychological and physical complications that come with it.

4) Lose weight and enjoy other benefits yourself.
 
Breastfeeding isn’t a one-way affair, because as much as infants benefit from the mother’s milk, changes in the woman’s body also put her to an advantage. Exclusive breastfeeding works as a natural contraceptive (98% effective) as it delays return of fertility even when the uterus returns to its normal size, also a benefit from breastfeeding.
 
As the woman’s body also prepares itself for feeding an infant, it burns an average of 500 calories a day, resulting in a one-pound weight loss per week. Breastfeeding mothers also effectively reduce their risks of breast and ovarian cancers, and osteoporosis and bone fracture.
 
5) Save money from hospital bills and work absence.
 
A local study by UNICEF and WHO estimated that an average of PHP 4,000.00 is spent on an infant per month. It usually covers for formula milk, plus feeding paraphernalia like bottles, teats, and safe water. Compared to breastfeeding which is free and develops healthier babies, the use of artificial milk puts financial pressure on families for higher risks of spending more on hospital bills, physician visits, and medicines.
 
Healthier breastfed infants also save parents of absences at work, which contribute to higher productivity for working mothers and the companies they work for. On top of all that, breast milk is also most environmentally-friendly feeding choice that requires no packaging, shipping or disposal.
 
“As we urge mothers to practice breastfeeding, we also invite fathers, relatives and friends of these mothers to provide encouragement to them,” says Abeja. “Breastfeeding is not easy, but with the right environment and with supportive and loving people around them, mothers will find the most fulfilling and rewarding experience.”
 
To register for the Nurture Run on April 13, Sunday, 5:30 AM at the Quezon City Memorial Circle, visit the website. For more details about BBB and the advocacy, visit the website and like their Facebook page.


Press release and photos from UNICEF Philippines