Sun.Star: Synchronized breastfeeding set August 8

Breastfeeding is beneficial to maternal and child health, ecology, economy and facilitates the strengthening of family ties. This is the message that the Philippine Lactation Resource and Training Center (PLRTC) wants to advocate to all chief executives of local government units as the country, together with 120 nations worldwide, celebrates Word Breastfeeding Week (WBW) on August 1 to 7, this year. "Every year, Filipinos spend more than P25 billion on something that is not necessary and even dangerous to their health, when these huge resources can be channeled to social services to further boost our country," said Dr. Elvira L. Henares-Esguerra, director of the Children for Breastfeeding Inc. Annually, Esguerra said, milk companies import formula milk at P3.1 billion and sell it to at seven times the cost or P21.5 billion and parents spend P536 million in funeral and other costs for 16,000 child deaths. They also pay P3.5 billion for medical and other expenses for treatment of formula-fed babies afflicted with diseases like asthma, diarrhea, pneumonia and malnutrition and a lose of P1 billion of wages due to absences from work. Poor families spend as much as P7,280 which is 30 percent of their family income to buy formula milk while breast milk is practically free, Esguerra said. Esguerra said breastfeeding is the most far-reaching and least costly Poverty Alleviation strategy of developing countries, especially in the Philippines where breastfeeding culture is diminished beyond all reasons. "Breast milk is the only perfect food for infants and the only perfect milk for children. It boosts the child's immune system and reduces risk of acquiring illnesses like obesity, heart disease, juvenile diabetes, cancer and many other diseases," she also emphasized. Breastfeeding also protects mothers from hemorrhage, many types of cancers, diabetes and osteoporosis and helps mother heal from the rigors of pregnancy and birthing. As such, she said the PLRTC has urged the LGU's that "no funding, donation or sponsorship from industries promoting breast milk substitutes and related products shall be accepted" for the celebration of the World Breastfeeding Week (WBW) in accordance with its international standard of ethics. Meanwhile, the PLRTC will initiate the staging of Synchronized Breastfeeding Worldwide on August 8, 2007 as a follow-up activity of the first Guinness World Record on Simultaneous Breastfeeding in Multiple Sites mobilizing 16,000 mothers, as of the last count, in more than 400 sites nationwide. Held in partnership with the Technical Skills Development Authority (Tesda) and the Guinness World Record on simultaneous Breastfeeding in a Single Site last year, the Philippines broke the US Record of 1,130 mothers in 2002 when RP mobilized 3,541 mothers in a single location, Esguerra added. - Sun.Star